


Finding a way back

by madmana (woelfchen)



Series: Aiming High (GTA V AU) [1]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: F/M, Fem!Caleb, GTA AU, Kidnapping, M/M, Mafia AU, Multi, Murder, Panic Attacks, Swearing, Violence, fem!Jack, slight homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-23
Updated: 2014-08-16
Packaged: 2018-01-13 11:25:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 29,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1224502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/woelfchen/pseuds/madmana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All Ray wanted, was to go to the bank. But so does this group of maniacs with guns.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Ray sighed. He waited impatiently in a line up to the counter, a single piece of paper in his hands. The bank was busted with people, as it usually was at lunch time during work days. That didn't make it easier to wait though. He was standing a solid 20 minutes and there were still 3 people in front of him. Once again, he groaned, when he overheard the old lady, that was currently talking to the clerk, say with her high pitched, whiny voice: "I don't fully understand that. Can you please explain it to me?"

He was about to slam his head against a nearby pillar when he was the next in line and the clerk excused himself to go and 'check something in the back'. But then he noticed, that two of the other clerks did as well and he looked around the room. There were at least 20 people waiting, all having some sort of annoyed, displeased look on their faces. An businessman, who was just standing at the counter next to him yelled: "Come on, I don't have all day!" and a distressed banker came back through a door to the left. "Please, everyone. Stay calm. We have a slight technical issue which is being worked on right now."  
The man yelled again: "I've been waiting 30 minutes, just hand me my fucking money and type it down later!" Ray rolled his eyes. Judging by the way the man dressed, he should know better than this.  
The glass door slid open and two men about his age and a man with a skull mask in his hands entered. A security guard approached them and kindly asked them to wait outside the building until they'd fixed a problem. The man with the skull mask just smiled at him and pulled out a gun from his mask. Without hesitating, he shot the man in the chest.   
Everybody screamed, but before chaos could take over, the two younger men pulled out weapons themselves and pointed at everybody that would dare to make a move. "Everybody, shut up!", the older man demanded loudly and silence took over. The man grinned. "Very good. Now. Would everybody be so kind to drop to their knees. Very good, very good. Now. Down with your heads. Nobody will get hurt if you just do as we say. Down with your heads, touch it to the floor. Stretch your hands out in front of you."

 

Rays heart pounded in his chest as he got down on his knees and stretched his hands out in front of him. He lowered his head down, glancing around a bit. He could see the men walking around between them. "We said down with your head, asshole.", one of the younger said and shoved a man down violently. Ray could hear his skull crack against the floor from where he was. He turned his head back to the dirty spot beneath him, in fear of getting his head smashed down as well.  
"All right, now that we have this sorted out, do us the favor and stay this way until we're done here." Ray chewed on his bottom lip as he dared to glance to the pillar that was right besides him. It was halfway up paneled with metal plates, so they could be cleaned with water. The bank kept it clean enough that he could actually see the reflection of the three men, slightly blurry but enough to see their main features. If he just kept looking, he might be able to memorize them and help the police later, eventhough the thought of having to deal with police made him uneasy. After all, he couldn't risk getting caught himself.

"Two minutes until the camera system is back up. Four on the right, five on the left. Two right above the counter.", the older man counted out. "I'll clear the front."  
The robbers separated and began to shoot down each camera in the room. Ray almost jumped, when parts of plastic and glass fell down right next to him, at least it made him stare down on the floor again. "All clear.", the one with sandy hair said finally, the two words thick with an accent. British, Rays mind supplied him. This could be important later. 

"All right. Let's get Daddy in and out before the alarm system starts working again.", the first man, who was clearly in charge here, ordered, but the other two didn't answer. They just patrolled down the lines between the civilians. Ray kept an eye out for them in the reflective surface and duck his head whenever they got to close.   
A woman started to whimper when one of the men stopped next to her, and a moment later, Ray could hear a gun getting reloaded. "You better shut up right about now, Missy, or you're getting a good load of these right in your pretty blonde locks.", the man threatened. She whimpered again and Ray could see the redhead with curly locks stretch out his arm towards her.

 

"Now now. We don't want this to be necessary, do we?", a new, smooth voice asked from the front of the building. Ray glanced up to see a couple standing in front of the opened glass door. They stepped through and the door slid shut behind them. From the window region, where the rest of the security guards where kneeling in the same way Ray did, he could hear a murmured "Why does the door work? That's not possible!"   
"We told you to shut the fuck up!", the angry man yelled from where he still stood towering above the woman, who started whimpering yet again.  
"Knock him out.", the man murmured towards the woman with short, orangered hair. Without hesitation, she took the few steps over towards the security guard, raising the shotgun she carried in her hands and crashing it down on his head. With an ugly dull crack, the guards head connected with the butt of the shotgun and just a second later with the floor. There was a muffled curse and insult from another guard, and he, too, was knocked out.

"All right.", the man said with the lightest hint of a chuckle in his voice, "We're going up. You check the people."  
The woman joined him and they walked past the counter and towards the door that the employees had gone through earlier. The moment they stood in front of it, it slid open without being touched. Rays eyebrows shot up and then remembered to look down, when he heard the remaining three walking through the crowd, asking everybody where their wallet was. At first, Ray was to distracted by the sounds of gunshots that echoed from behind that now closed door. Men and woman alike were screaming and yelling, but soon, only silence followed. He didn't notice what exactly the three remaining men were doing.  
"I don't have a wallet.", a man to his right said. The voice, that Ray identified with the man with the mask, answered calmly: "That's bullshit. Nobody goes to a bank and waits in line without his wallet." Once again, the clicking sound of a gun getting switched out of safety resounded through the room. "Now, tell me where you have it."  
The mans breath hitched and he finally stuttered: "Vest pocket." 

Ray glanced to the side and he saw the man with the mask reach down, fumble awkwardly through the vest of the other man and retrieving his wallet. He flicked it open and took out the ID. "Kowalski, Daniel Maurice.", he read out half loud, to no one in particular. "0127 Innocence Blvd. in South Los Santos."   
Ray lifted his head a little in confusion. The man tucked the ID back in the wallet and let it drop on Kowalskis back. "Don't move.", he warned, before he went over to the next person. "Hérnandez, Amanda.", the British man said, not far from him and the third man was reading out an address from the outer regions of Santos. 

 

He was about to drop his head to the floor again, when he noticed something in the reflection. One of the security guards that wasn't knocked out yet was making a small, continuous motion with his hand. When he realized that he had Rays attention, he stared at him intensely and balled his hand to a fist. He pretended to cough and then pointed towards him. When Ray didn't catch on, re repeated it and Ray realized what he wanted.   
He took a deep breath and let out a cough. The guard urged him to go on and Ray did, dropping his head to the ground. He coughed again, louder and longer, until one of the robbers stepped over to him. "Your wallet?", he asked with his deep, british accent. "Backpocket.", Ray answered between two coughs. In the reflection he saw the guard slowly crawling closer. The Brit reached in Rays pocket and took out the wallet. "Newman, Anthony", he read Rays fake identity out aloud, along with his address. "Check medical information.", he then said and Rays eyebrows shot up in surprise. He was fucked.   
Ray had no condition that explained his coughing whatsoever. Apparently the blond man noticed as much. "Why are you coughing?", he asked, crouching down next to Rays head. "Chocked.", Ray said, slightly hoarse. The man pat his back twice before placing his wallet between his shoulderblades. "Shut up and don't move.", he instructed, standing back up.

Then, everything happened so fast. The redhead called out for him from the other side of the room: "Vav!". The Brit spun around, not aware of the guard that had made his way towards him and was towering behind him. He hit the robber with his club square in the face. The man, Vav, cried out in pain and nearly crashed back to the ground. There was a gunshot and warm liquid and particles of different materials rained down all around and on Ray, who cried out in fear and shock. The body of the guard hit the floor next to Rays feet, a large chunk of his head missing. Ray whimpered, and could only imagine what happened next, for he was gripping his hands tightly into his hair, protecting his head as much as possible. The angry redhead let out a string of curses and the masked man threatened somebody loudly to stay down. A moment later, a second gunshot fell and there were some more shrieks around him. When Ray next dared to look, he saw that the last guards body was also a lifeless pile on the ground.   
The redhead was standing right in front of Vav, who still was right next to Ray, maybe a little too close. He inspected the nasty gash on the other mens cheek. Blood poured out of it, but Vav batted his hand away. "It's fine. Come on, let's finish this.", he murmured, just loud enough for Ray to hear over the angry yelling from the masked man, who was telling everybody to stay the fuck where they were and not to try to be heroes. His gun was still raised, ready to take everybody out who was willing to even so much as dare to move just a little bit.

"Fine.", the redhead finally said and went to check the next person. "Hero situation.", Ray heard him say, again to nobody in particular. He now was certain that they were somehow connected with another person outside the building. "Got hit.", the Brit said while he checked some womans purse for her ID. Then, quickly "No, it's fine. Finish this."  
He couldn't help it, this was kind of interesting. Ray was curios, who were they talking to? What were they doing? Apparently, they were not after their money, for they didn't even look into the civilians wallets for their cards or loose money. They only took their names and addresses - which was probably threatening enough. Knowing these robbers that didn't even hesitate to kill somebody knew where he lived was making him reconsider talking to the police afterwards. It was psychological warfare, and it was kind of working.

 

They had finished checking everybody for their IDs and just walked between the crouching people quickly after the incident with the guards. They were quiet most of the time, only making an off hand statement like "Yes", "Got it", or "5 minutes" now and then. Rays arms and shoulders really began to hurt, staying in the uncomfortable position for so long. Apparently he wasn't the only one, because somebody shifted across the room, causing the wallet to slide off his or her shoulders. Quickly, the masked man was right next to her and put the wallet back on the spine. "Don't fucking move!", he once again demanded. 

After a minute, the three got nervous and kept glancing back towards the door behind which the other two vanished behind. "Come on...", whispered Vav and the redhead shot him a glance. "Calm down.", he murmured, but he couldn't keep a worried tone out of his voice. "They're on their way.", masked men said, though he couldn't keep his voice even either.   
Finally, the door slid open and the pair came out, each with a briefcase in one hand and with red sprinkled clothing. Ray pressed his eyes shut for a second until they passed him, then he glanced in the reflective surface next to him.   
"Took you long enough, assholes.", the Brit exclaimed. The man took a quick glance at him, then his gaze lingered. He stepped directly in front of him, way in his comfort zone. He gripped Vavs chin in what seemed like a tight grip and stared onto the gash on his cheek. Slowly his head turned to the masked man. "What happened?", he asked in a low, growling voice.   
"Asshole tried to play hero.", the redhead answered, before the other could even open his mouth and murmur out: "I'm fine". Ray lifted his head just a little further to see their reactions. Masked mans free hand balled into a tight fist. "Got what he deserved though.", he then grit out. He pointed with his gun towards the dead body on the ground. The others looked in the pointed direction and - too late, Ray realized his head was still up. It was the man with the briefcase that noticed him staring in the reflection. "Motherfucker.", he grunted out.

With a few quick steps, the man was right next to him. He picked up the wallet from his shoulderblades and replaced it with his foot. "Give me anything interesting about Anthony Newman, that doesn't make me shoot his head off right now.", he commanded angrily, and the pressure on Rays back intensified. There was a long pause in which nobody seemed to breathe. Then, the foot on his back was gone and Ray closed his eyes. This was it. That man would shoot him and Ray's last breath would be wasted on a dirty floor in a stupid fucking bank in a shitty city, and nobody would tell his family, because he was Anthony Newman and not Ray Narvaez jr. and nobody knew the truth.   
A hand grabbed the hair on the back of his head roughly and janked him up into a kneeling position. "You're quite an interesting fella, Newman. You're coming with us."


	2. Chapter 2

Roughly, the masked man shoved Ray in front of him out of the building. Still not grasping the situation, Ray stared back at the building in which the civilians were still instructed to stay down and not move by the two younger man. He should be dead, but he didn't complain a bit about being alive. He knew better than to try and run, and he knew that he better keep calm and obey their instructions to keep himself living. But the fact that they knew something made him nervous.  
The leader of the group was standing in the back of a black car, shoving the two briefcases in the trunk. He was commanding his invisible army over a microphone that must be somewhere attached to his body. "Leaving in two. Keep blocking the police lines and the security down as long as possible. Disable capture of every camera in a two mile radius. And get our nurse ready to be picked up."  
Angrily, he slammed down the hatch and turned around to the woman that was standing right next to the masked man. "Take that idiots bike. I'm not letting him drive like that.", he instructed and the woman nodded and grabbed a hideous purple bike that was carelessly parked on the sidewalk in front of the bank. "Docks?", she asked, and Ray noticed he hadn't heard her speak before. Her voice was deep and somehow fitting to her rough facial features. The man nodded and she started the engine. Within seconds, she sped down the road and vanished behind a corner.    
"M'bike!", the sandy haired Brit squeaked out, racing out of the building. "What-?", he started, his accent prominent in his voice. Before he could even finish his question, the leader interrupted him: "Jack's taking it. You're coming with me. And don't give me that look. You need stitches."  
  
The Brit pouted like a child, once again muttering: "I'm fine, really.", and then the last of the five, the red headed, angry man, left the building behind him. "I could take him.", he offered, but the look the leader gave him silenced him. Instead, he asked him: "You still have the rope in your trunk?"  
The redhead grinned and glanced to the masked man, giving him a little wink. "Always prepared. But, Mr. Hermann, now is not the time.", he chuckled and the other men joined in. "For him, idiot.", the leader - Mr. Hermann? What the hell? - said, his voice suddenly soft and joking. "Tie him up. Doesn't have to be pretty, just effective."  
  
Within seconds, a rope was slung around Rays waist several times, before the two ends were crisscrossed around his wrists. To tighten the  rope, the redhead slung the next part around the crossed part between Rays hands and knotted the two still long ends twice. Then, he slung it under his arms and made a loose knot in his back in order to give him no possibility to try and free himself. "A fair warning.", he said, "The more you struggle, the tighter it gets."  
The masked man then shoved him towards the black car. "Get in.", he grunted, with a hand pressed firmly to Rays back. He had no choice but to obey, knowing that he wouldn't get far anyway, tied up like this. "Skid through.", he said when he took place in the car. Over his shoulder, Ray could see the redhead press a light kiss to the wounded Brit, and a surprised gasp escaped his mouth. The masked man shoved him roughly and the second later, the angry man got in an obnoxious green sports car and drove off to the other direction.  
  
The leader turned around from his seat in the front and shoved a blindfold over Rays eyes. "Only for now.", he murmured softly and Ray felt the seat next to him dip, when somebody sat down. "Do us a favor and don't try anything funny.", he recognized the masked mans voice. Ray couldn't help but grin. "Good thing you asked. Couldn't have behaved otherwise.", he joked badly. The silence that followed was deafening.  
"Better get going.", the leader said in the front and started the engine.  
  
  
The ride lasted roughly 10 minutes, and Ray could hear the guy with the mask softly murmur to the injured Brit, that had assumedly taken place besides him. "Should have looked out for you more. T'was my fault. M'sorry, Gav.", he muttered. "It's alright, Ryan. It's fine, really. Not your fault.", the Brit answered quietly, and Ray was glad he had found out another name.  
"You're still bleeding. That's a deep cut. You really need stitches.", Ryan observed, not even trying to hide his worries.  
"Shut up, Ryan. I'm fine, I'm telling you."  
  
  
By the time they finally stopped, they had slipped into an uncomfortable silence again. The door next to Ray opened, and the blindfold was taken off his eyes. "You better follow. On your own.", the leader of the group instructed. Ray struggled slightly to get out of the car without falling straight on his face, but he somehow managed. A quick look around revealed a small variety of different cars and bikes and a few closed doors along one side of the garage. "Come on.", Ryan called for him from one of the doors.  
Ray made his way over, admiring a metallic orange sports car which he identified as an Overflod Entity XF on his way. "Woah.", he commented flabbergasted.  
"Yes, its nice. Now, move. We don't have forever.", Ryan growled out and Ray quickly sped up. They walked through a corridor into a spacious room with a lounge to one side and a kitchen with a freestanding counter dividing it from the rest of the room to the other side. In front of a small window, in the middle of the wall opposite to the door, was a table with a few chairs scattered around it. The woman, Jack, was standing in front of the counter, hands on her hips, and an angry glare on her face. Ryan as well as Gav - what kind of name was that? - ducked away from her and Ray had to suppress a giggle. So much for the tough guys.  
The leader went back to pushing Ray forwards, he guided him to one of the chairs. "Have a seat.", he said, missing the kindness he showed earlier.  
  
Ray sat down, making sure he could see everybody else. The scruffy man sat down on the other side of the table, leaning towards him and crossing his arms on the surface in front of him. He just stared at him, without saying a single word and Ray started to get nervous. This was just creepy.  
The woman had grabbed Gav by the wrist and shoved his head to the side roughly to inspect the gash on his cheek closely. "Damn it, Ryan, you had one task.", she growled out and gripped the younger mans chin in much the same way the leader had earlier that day. Ryan shuffled uneasily to the side, reaching out for the younger man as well. He gently put a hand on his back and rubbed slightly. "You try keeping an eye out for these little fuckers.", he argued and she gave him an amused side glance.  
"All right. Give me that cloth over there. I'll clean this mess up a little, until Caleb gets here.", she said, pointing towards the counter.  
  
The younger man tried to pull away, as soon as Ryan let go of him, but Jack just grabbed him harder, her hand moving from his chin to his shoulder. "I'm bloody fine!", he cried out once again, but still, nobody listened.  
Suddenly, the man in front of Ray slammed his hand on the table. "Fucking finally!", he exclaimed at the same time, and Ray almost fell from his seat in surprise. Then, he went quiet again and stared at some point on the wall behind the Puerto Rican.  
Rays eyes darted back to the other people in the room. Jack was wiping away the blood from Gavs cheek, while Ryan sat on the counter behind him, one hand on Gavs shoulder and the other arm around his waist. What was it with these men and touching? A moment later, Jack discarded the cloth and pressed her body forward, drawing the two men in for a hug. Ray could see Gav close his eyes from where he sat, before the young man pressed his forehead into her neck. Jack turned her head to the side for a moment and kissed him softly on the hair. Just how much affection was this guys needing?  
  
  
There was a humming noise from the garage and then, a moment later, the door opened again and the curly redhead entered with another woman in tow. "Micoo-", the Brit chimed happily and wiggled his way out of the hug he was trapped in.  
"About time you show up, lad.", Jack said sternly, but with a grin on her face. "Come on, Gavin, let Caleb do her magic."  
Finally, Ray had the real name for the british man, leaving only two names unknown. "There is nothing to be done, dammit, everything is bloody fine!", Gavin protested again. Ray could see the leader roll his eyes, not really paying attention to them, but still aware of their little banter.  
"Not bloody fine, bloody face!", Caleb said, earning a 'boo' from the other woman. Most of them started laughing, which still was weird to witness, considering they had just robbed a bank and killed at least 3 people. Come to think of it, it was incredible that Ray himself was alive. His mind wandered off into a slight state of panic.  
  
"Alright. Thanks, L. You're an angel.", the leader then said and reached for his left ear. He fumbled for a second, before he took out a small, skin toned in-ear receiver and placed it on the table in front of him. Then, he looked Ray straight in the eye.  
"So...", he exhaled with a grin. "Anthony Newman. Interesting name. Who gave it to you?", he asked.  
"My mom, who else?", Ray answered on the spot. The man laughed. "Your mom!", he boomed out, his voice cracking around the edges in a way to pleasant way. "Ryan, come here. You gotta hear this!", he the called out loudly.  
The man in question turned away from the others, Gavin now pinned on top of the counter by the redhead, who was sitting on his lap, holding his torso down by his arms, and Jack, who was standing behind him, his head in an iron grip while Caleb cleaned out the gash with a small cotton ball and tweezers. Gavin was wiggling around like a kid.  
  
Ryan turned around and sauntered over to them. "What's up, Geoff?", he asked, innocently enough. Ray shivered, remembering the gun, that must still be on his person.  
"Oh, you gotta hear this. Hey, Newman. Tell him, what I asked you.", he prompted, waving his hand at Ray impatiently.  
"He asked me where I got my name.", he mumbled out, only to get poked in the arm by the man standing behind him. "What was that?", he asked, and Geoff burst out into a cackling giggle again.  
"'Where did you got your name.' That was, what he asked.", Ray paraphrased, now with more confidence in his voice. Confidence was key in this situation. He might be able to talk his way out of dangerous situations.  
"Right!", Geoff cried out, still cackling, "and then, what did you say?", he pressed further.  
"I said I got it from my mother.", Ray answered calmly.  
  
Ryan joined the leader, Geoff, into his mad giggles. "Right. _Your mom_ gave it to you. That's great. Great answer.", he choked out between two breaths. Geoff caught Ryan's eyes and suddenly, both stopped laughing and went dead serious.  
"Did she gave it two you two years ago, with a combat pistol and the name of city to go to?", Geoff said, his voice cutting through Ray like a knife. Suddenly, all the air seemed to be sucked out of the room, Ray had trouble breathing. They knew. They _knew_!  
  
Ray panicked, his eyes flew to the door. It was closed, his hands were still tied together. But maybe, he could still open it, they were in his front after all. Or maybe, he could make it through the window. Just one jump, but getting up with his hands tied wouldn't be easy. If he was quick enough, he could steal the gun from Ryan. That could be his best shot, one man disarmed, a weapon in his own hands, the rest too wrapped up with Gavin...  
  
  
A clicking noise had him snapping back to reality. Geoff sat calmly in front of him, an AP Pistol casually in his hand. Unsecured and pointed at Ray. "Why Newman?", he asked, his voice dangerously low.  
Ray licked his lips, trying to wet his mouth in the process. "Funny story.", he started and Geoff exchanged a look with Ryan. "It better be."  
  
Behind the two men, Gavin yelped in pain. "Stop moving so much, damnit!", Caleb scolded the trapped man. "Stop stabbing me with the needle, then!", he countered. The woman was having none of it, raising the needle to his eye. "I wouldn't be stabbing you, if you just hold still already!"  
Ryan glanced over to them, then back to his boss. Geoff dismissed him with a quick wave of his unarmed hand and Ryan was back by the Brits side in seconds.  
"Well? I'm waiting.", Geoff demanded impatiently.  
"Right. So, I was leaving the city, and I had a friend who knew this guy. He knew how to fake IDs and get your name in the system. 'paid him about all of the money I owned and he worked his magic for me." Ray swallowed. "When I got there, he asked me what the hell I wanted. And I said: ' I don't know, man. I just need to be a new man', so he was like: 'A Newman, eh? Can do that' and I went with it. Seemed ironic enough."  
  
Geoff stared disbelievingly at him. A full minute passed, until he snapped the safety of his Pistol back on and sighed. "Okay. That was a funny story.", he admitted. "Now, want to tell the rest of it, or do you need to be threatened for it as well?"  
Ray shrugged. "You want to know why I came here, right?", he asked hesitantly. Geoff nodded.  
He drew in a deep breath. He was probably better of spilling now. He closed his eyes and started his story: "I lived in New York. Things have always been rough, and I've been surrounding myself with the wrong people. I came in contact with some gangs and at some point I started dealing drugs, I was still in school back then. Never been caught, but it's been damn close a few times. Anyways.", he looked up. Geoff was still listening, his Pistol lowered to the table, but still in his hands. Now the hard part. "When I was done, I was still around the school area, selling my stuff. There was this one kid, Luca, that always had me on the edge. Tried to lower my price, tried to make excuses, tried to get it for free. And once, he stole my bag. Wasn't much in there, just a couple hundred bucks worth of stuff, but damn, I needed that. Boss would have my head if I lost it. So I shot him. Five times, out of panic. Naturally, I needed to leave, as soon as possible."  
  
Playing with the gun in his hand, Geoff looked at him with an unreadable expression. "Okay.", he said. Ray narrowed his eyes. That was all? "So - can I leave now?", he tried and Geoff burst into laughter. "Yeah, _right_. I'll let you just leave now."  
"That's a 'no', huh?", Ray said, maybe a little to crushed. Seriously, he didn't expect Geoff to just let him go, but a guy can hope, can't he?  
Geoff's expression shifted slightly, and he stared at the gun in his hand as if he hadn't ever seen one before in his life. He turned it around several times, taking in every single detail from every single angle possible, and he took his time with it. It unnerved Ray.  
  
"Let me ask you a simple question.", Geoff said, his tone way to even and Ray subconsciously sat up straighter. "Do you know who Vivian Santonio is?"  
Ray thought about it for a moment, but could only shake his head. "Never heard of her.", he said and Geoff just nodded. "It would've surprised me. I'll give you a hint. She has something in common with Adrian O'Neil and Thomas Benz. Still no clue? There is also Alexander Harley."  
He tried really hard to remember anything, but there was nothing connected with these names. "Are they politicians, maybe? Or do they have a band? Are those your real names?", he tried, adding the last suggestion as an afterthought. Geoff grinned. "No, buddy, but good idea. Let me give you another name, maybe that'll clear the fog for you. I doubt it, though. Margot Winters, ringing a bell? Scrawny old woman. Well, at least in comparison."  
Rays face scrunched up while he tried to come up with something, anything. None of these names were familiar to him, but truth to be told, he wasn't too invested in people in general. They could be anyone.  
"Alright. There is one last name, and I'd bet my boys you'll recognize it. Andy Sniders."  
  
Rays blood run cold. He had tried so hard to forget this name, but it was burned into his head, there was no way he could ever not remember the face connected to it. He could never just forget the night, he had seen that boy the last time. He would never be able to keep his eyes out of his dreams, ignore the feeling that came with them. "What do they have in common?", he croaked out hoarsely.  
Geoff grinned. "They were our firsts.", he said, leaning towards him.  
"That's not true.", Ray denied.  
"Oh, it is, buddy. He may have not been the first one who died because of you, but he sure is the first you choose to kill. He's your first murder."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank you all for reading this story. I'm glad you seem to like it as much as I do and I really appreciate your comments.  
> I'll try to get a chapter done by sunday, but just in case I don't, there wont be one until a week after, since I'm not at home next week. You just need to be a little bit patient.


	3. Chapter 3

"How did you know?", Ray gasped out. There was no way this criminal could know about that, the police hadn't found a single clue. And he would know, he had kept tabs on it. A year after he was gone, they had dropped the case to move on to a more important one.   
Geoff's face split into a big, shit eating grin. "Let's just say you made at least one bad decision today. Shouldn't have had your medical infos checked. You had nothing, no regular check ups, no accidents, not even dental records. Naturally, our Eyes'n'Ears researched you the second we were on the road."  
"But how..?", Ray quizzed, still not believing they had him uncovered within half an hour of research.  
"How is it you haven't been in trouble yet? Brownman, the police is full of idiots. You know these guys, right? Stupid, little motherfuckers, crawling their way towards their chiefs asses and stuffing donuts in each others faces. The real talents work elsewhere.", Geoff said, leaning back relaxed, as if he was talking to an old friend.

Ray closed his eyes. "Yes. But still, how did you - that was fast. I just need to know, how -"  
"Anthony Newman first popped up in the system four years ago. Giving a two year span to cover the tracks is a common strategy by third-class document faker. He moved to Las Santos in August, two years ago from New York with a seven months delay in Kansas City. Also, a common strategy. So all we had to do is to check the migrants for, say, the past year. Keeping this in mind, the next step was to check the people gone missing. Vanished from planet earth, so to say. That reduced the amount of possibilities.", he explained, a little impatiently. Grabbing his gun again, he lent forward, fixing his eyes on Ray. "The police had your real identity, but hasn't connected you to Newman yet. Doesn't know where to look first."

When Ray opened his mouth to ask another question, Geoff interrupted him knowingly: "Andy Sniders, died on March 21, two years ago. Jessica Pine, found dead a week and a half later. Tony van Weiten, I see you mixed their names for your pseudonym, dead on April 11. And the last one, Angelina Johnson, April 13. All four died the same way, three bullets out of three different guns. First in the knee, so they couldn't run. Second in the shoulder, so they would suffer. The third one from a close distance, not more than an arm length away from them. You made them look at you when you killed them. You wanted them to see you, when you took away their life with one simple move. A shot in the head, right between the eyes. That's a nasty way to take a life. Almost psychotic. How did they know it was you? Checked your personal information on shooting ranges, gun registrations and we checked blackmarket trades additionally. You owned all three guns, though the police only knew of the registered one. By know they searched your old flat and found the rest of it. Found a pretty collection, I dare say. Anyway, you knew all your victims, because they all bought their stuff from you. It surprises me they didn't caught you after Sniders, considering Luca Pinotti was killed in a very similar way."

Rays fingers twitched. He wanted nothing more, than to grab that gun that was so tauntingly being played with right in front of him. He wanted to kill that man. He almost felt like he had to, because Geoff knew. They all knew. But here he sat, not moving, not even talking anymore. Just accepting getting his secrets stripped down one by one.   
He swallowed, again eyeing the gun right in front of him. The next time, Geoff would place it down, Ray would grab it. He would shoot the man, just a plain bullet to the head and the moment of surprise to take out Ryan, too. He seemed to be the biggest threat in the room, he had to go right next. Everything else needed to be decided in the moment it happened. Ray took a deep breath, steadying himself for what he was about to do.

 

A short, two noted chime sounded through the room and everybody stilled and looked up. Confused, Ray took the scene in, before he realized, that the tone must have come from an intercom. A joyful woman spoke up, her voice contorted by the electronics: "Hey guys, sorry to interrupt the fun. None of you is wearing your receivers anymore. They're about to make you the breaking news, so you might want to turn on the TV in a bit."  
The two younger men cheered, Gavin finally with a big, white band aid on his cheek. The ginger woman, Jack, grinned widely and announced: "I'm grabbing the beer!", while Ryan strolled over to the lounge, to turn on the fairly big TV. He switched the channel to the news, in which they currently covered a politicians speech. 

Geoff stood up, giving Ray a slight hand gesture. "Come on.", he said, "Get your ass over there."  
He took a step towards them, his eyes still fixed on the gun in Geoff's hands. The man simply tucked it away in his pants, making his way over to the big sofa and sat next to Ryan, who had already taken place right in the middle. Gavin strolled up next, placing himself right in Geoff's lap, curling in on his chest.   
Ray stood, uncertain on what to do, but Ryan simply gestured to the floor in front of them. Was this another joke on him? He would not sit down on the ground, not when five dangerous criminals sat behind him, armed and with beer. Instead, he grabbed a chair and dragged it over the wooden floor, scratching two legs on the ground. It caused a horrible screeching noise. Jack gave him a scolding look when she handed a beer to the three sitting men and placed two more on the couch table. "Caleb, you're staying?", she asked, holding another one out to the blonde. She smiled, but shook her head. "I should get back to the others. Hey, you guys need anything? You can give me a list now, and I can start working on that right away."  
"I think we're running out of ammo for the MGs. If you could organize some, that would be top.", Ryan called, turning on the sofa to look at her. "Also, I still really want a Grenade Launcher, so if you stumble upon one...", he grinned. Geoff behind him shook his head violently. 'Don't', he mouthed and winked to the blonde.  
She laughed. "All right. Well, I'm heading out. Taking one of the bikes.", she said, waving a quick goodbye and left.

The six remaining people settled down, Ray on his chair to the side and the rest cuddled together on the couch. After a short while, a red sign appeared in the bottom left corner of the screen, signaling breaking news. "Lombank branch Vinewood robbed - Situation unclear at Lombank - 30 policemen currently present, more arriving" ran through the lower part of the screen before it started anew.   
"Michael, you up for bullshit bingo?", Gavin asked over the heads of Ryan an Jack. The redhead turned towards him, lifting his already half empty bottle. "Hell yeah!", he confirmed. "Dibs for 'guy in a mask'.", he grinned and Gavin pouted. "Aw, that was what I was going for!"  
Ryan laughed. "Well obviously I'm going to take that. I told you it'll be a good distraction."  
"I'm taking racism, then.", Gavin said, taking another sip from his bottle, also half empty already.  
"Jack, Geoff, you playing?", Michael asked, throwing an arm over the womans shoulder and cuddling closer in her neck. She placed a kiss to his forehead. "Gonna keep an eye for our guest.", the ginger said, looking at the bottle in front of her. The cap was still untouched. "Speaking of which, you want a beer, boy?"

Ray frowned a little. "I don't drink.", he said and everybody turned towards him. "What?", Michael called out, clearly not believing him.   
"Yeah, it's just not my thing.", Ray declared, turning towards the TV again, watching the end credits for the current show. "I think it'll start now.", he said, distracting them from him.

"Micoo, what are you drinking on?", Gavin asked, muffled by Geoff's neck in which he had pressed himself. It was disgusting, really. The older man had wrapped his arms around the slender frame of the Brit, pressing himself right back in the others body. His hand slowly ran up and down Gavin's side and back and Ray had to force himself not to watch them.  
"Wrong descriptions.", the redhead declared and lowered his bottle. "It begins.", he said.

The local news studio flickered onto the screen. A men in his late forties sat behind a large desk, a few papers in his hands. After the jingle he looked up, placing the papers down and with a frown on his face, he begun narrating: "Breaking news: 1 pm, the Lombank branch in Vinewood had been the center of a crime. A yet unidentified group of criminals forcefully entered the building and made its way into the inner structure of the bank. Los Santos Police is currently working on the crime scene. Forces are still arriving. Our reporter Carolin Jenkins is also present right now. Carolin, what can you tell us about the state of things?"  
The screen split, a woman with curly brown hair in a grey coat was cut right next to the guy. She held a fuzzy microphone in her hand. "Steven, it's very hectic here. The street is closed off, creating space for more policecars and ambulances to arrive. Just a minute ago, the first victims were carried out of the building, and they were rushed off immediately. We talked to a witness, he told us they couldn't reach the police for at least five minutes after the group took off. Technical errors have been reported from the building for little over a week. We have another witness right here, who is ready to tell us, what she saw inside the building."  
The screen centered on a woman that Ray vaguely recognized. Geoff reached into his pocket and pulled his phone out. He tapped it a few times, switching it to speaker.  
"What's up, Bossman?", the same voice Ray heard earlier over the intercom said.  
"You still watching the News?", he asked over the woman in the TV, declaring how terrified she was.  
"Yeah."  
"Just to make sure, find out who that is.", Geoff requested and hang up, after he got an "On it" as an answer.

"So, can you tell us what exactly happened back in the building?", the reporter asked the now sobbing woman. She looked annoyed that she didn't get the answers she was asking for.  
"Yes, so, I was waiting in line, when these criminals just walked in. They had their guns out and immediately started shooting the security."  
"Michael, that's one for you.", Ryan said and nudged him in the arm. "Wrong description."  
"Yeah, bullshit.", Michael mumbled and took a deep sip from his beer.   
"You're getting wasted today.", Gavin grinned cheekily. He leaned forward, halfway over Ryan. Geoff run his hand over his back.

"What happened next?", the reporter asked, pleased that she finally got a useful answer from the woman.  
"Well, the second group came in and went straight for the vault, while the others started to rob us. They took our money and jewelry, everything that was of value. The guy with the mask even took my earrings out of my ear."  
"That fucking, lying bitch!", Ryan shouted angrily. He almost threw his bottle, but Gavin rose it to his mouth. "That's one for each of you.", he chuckled. Both complied.  
"Can you tell us something about the group? They were wearing masks?", the reporter inquired further. The woman nodded eagerly.  
"Yes, well, one of them did. The man with a mask was terrifying. He must've not been from here. You know, they had another foreigner with them. They are terrorists.", she dropped her voice to a conspiratorial tone. "I think one of them was Irish. And the last one could be an Italian.", she said. "Those freaks must've have some kind of mission."  
The group was stunned. "That one was basically one big racist insult. Also, she mentioned Ryan and described you lot wrong. All three of you.", Jack laughed and the three playing men took a swig each. 

"What about the second group, can you tell us about them some more?"  
The woman nodded, now fully in her element. "Sure! There were at least four dudes. When they came in, they also immediately killed one of the security guards. Then, they went to the vault. Came back, a little later, and they got into an argument with the first group. Oh, and they took a hostage, before they left.", the woman narrated excitedly.

 

"Well, that woman is full of shit. You guys can empty your bottles straight away. I'm going to get the package.", the leader declared, shoving Gavin from his lap roughly. The young man just crawled over to Ryan's lap and flopped down over the remaining three. Ray felt like throwing up when first Jack, then Michael bend down to kiss the man. This just wasn't right.  
Geoff walked out of the room, back to the cars. The woman on the news was finally let go and another witness was asked to narrate what happened. It was another, very different version of what actually happened. "I get it now.", Ray mumbled, when he watched the three men on the couch, still playing bullshit bingo.

 

Nobody even payed attention to him anymore. Maybe he could make his way out of the building. Slowly, he pushed his chair back a little. Just a little bit. He glanced towards the four criminals, that were bickering over something the reporter said. He pulled his feet back in, placed them on the ground under his chair and pushed. Another glance to the group, they were still not minding him. Ray grinned.   
He made it slowly out of their direct field of vision, before he dared to get off the chair. Crouched, he slipped out of his shoes in order to avoid squeaking noises on the wooden floor. On his socks, he made it towards the door.

"He's leggin' it!", Gavin suddenly yelled and Ray immediately sprinted out of the room. His plan to hide behind the door and wait until Geoff was back before he could slip out behind him was destroyed. Behind him, he could hear angry shouts and curses, footsteps and something heavy dropping to the ground.  
"Dammit, dammit, dammit...", he groaned, when he rattled on a locked door. Hiding in their base would probably not work out for him, but he had to at least try.   
"Just where do you think you're going?", Geoff suddenly asked behind him. Defeated, Ray closed his eyes and let his head drop against the door. "In there, I hoped.", he admitted.  
"Didn't know you were so desperate to get into our bedroom.", Geoff sneered.


	4. Chapter 4

Ray sat in an almost empty, windowless room, with his head in his hands. He was out of the frying pan and right into the fire. He had screwed up, massively, and he actually believed, that he'd be walking around freely, hadn't he tried to run in the first place.

Jack had immediately grabbed him, when she was the first to get to him and Geoff. She had grabbed him by the shoulders, her iron grip digging deep into his muscles. "Can we now please lock him in?", Ryan asked impatiently. Geoff nodded. "Guess so.", was his short reply.  
"I'll prepare the room.", Gavin had said and Michael followed him down the corridor. Jack, Ryan and Geoff had taken him back to the living room area in the meantime. They once again took place in front of the TV, this time forcefully making Ray sit down on the floor in front of them. Ryan had his eyes on him now all the time, grinning at him when he turned his head to glance back to them.   
The news reporters had still been discussing the occurrences at the Lombank, having a little more details on the technical difficulties that the bank witnessed for a couple of days. The security system had been faulty, and an employee offered the thought of somebody on the inside helping the group entering the building in the first place.  
"That's not even the worst assumption we heard today.", Jack had muttered and Geoff chuckled in response. "I'm sure they'll make up bullshit for the next few weeks.", Ryan mentioned. 

Geoff had suddenly sat up, turning up the volume of the TV. "-here with Police Detective Burns, head of the special forces, Los Santos Police Departement. Mr Burns, is there any information you can give us about the safety of our city?"  
The Cop, a man with dark curly hair and a well kept beard looked into the camera with a stern face. "The safety of our city is in no means in greater danger. However, we have reasons to believe that we're dealing with the Fake AH Crew again, a group of small criminals that caused trouble before."  
The reporter smiled at him. "What can you tell us about that group?", she asked. Burns just sighed.   
"The group is small, but very well organized. We investigated several cases that involved them, but we're yet lacking key information. If you have any info about that group or their whereabouts, please contact your nearest police station.", he said, looking directly at the camera.   
"How much of a threat are these people for our safety? Do you have any suggestions upon dealing with the situation?"  
The cop nodded. "We don't expect them to do anything for at least another month. Usually, they go quiet after one of their heists for a while, so we will be save for quite a while. And I'm confident that we'll be able to capture them before they can do anything else. And with your help, we'll be able to do so even sooner. So once again, please contact the closest police station if you have further information on that group." The man smiled into the camera. "There is no reason to be by any means more cautious or even to change your daily routine. We don't need to go into a state of panic because of a handful of minor criminals."  
Ryan chuckled. "Guess I never thought about it that way. We should expand."

"The room is ready.", Michael had called out for them from behind and Ryan once again grabbed Ray and dragged him to his feet. "Move.", he growled. Ray's shoulder was in pain, the fingers hurtful twisted into his muscle, but he didn't dare to let it show. Ryan maneuvered him through the door and over the corridor, stopping in front of a door on the very end of it. He pointed out a locking system next to the door handle. "No way in, no way out.", Ray mumbled and Ryan grinned. "Exactly."

 

Ray spun around in the room, once again checking for any way out of the room. There was a surprisingly comfortable bed pushed to the wall. He checked under and behind it, but there was no hidden compartment or door to be found. The floor was completely even, not even a crack in it. The room way actually really nice, though small, but the color the walls were painted in was a little annoying after a few hours of staring at it.   
He laid flat down on the ground, not wanting to use the bed. He had sat on it earlier, but something in him was to rebellious to bend down to the criminals rules. 

The silence was deafening. There wasn't even as much as a ticking clock that could keep him occupied, so he started humming. He had no way of knowing how much time passed, when he heard the electronic station of the lock beeping a few times, probably from entering a code to it. He turned his head to the door, watching as it swung open and Gavin entered. "Hey, you hungry? Thirsty? Need to piss?", he asked from the doorway. Ray simply stared at him and the young man sighed. "Listen, if you need something, better tell me now, because I'm not going to come back for you for at least five hours. We need to do stuff too, you know?"  
Ray bit his lips. That was admittedly a fair warning. "Yes.", he said simply.  
"Yes what?", Gavin cracked into a goofy smile.   
"All three.", Ray replied and moved to stand up.   
"Oh - Okay. Hurry on then, I'll show you the bath."  
Ray grinned. "You don't want to come in with me?", he asked cheekily. Gavin just grinned at him smugly. "Want me to hold it for you?", he asked.   
"Wait, stop a second before you come out. Need to do something.", Gavin suddenly said, holding up a hand when Ray was about to pass him. He held out what looked like big handcuffs. Ray sighed. He had been glad that the rope was gone, as soon as he was in his cell. It had bit into his skin on his wrists. Luckily, they were just a little sore and not actually scratched up.  
"Don't get any ideas. I'm armed.", Gavin warned, when he crouched down to click the cuffs on Rays ankles. Ray looked down. It would be so easy to knock the guy out and take his gun, why had he even told him in the first place? That guy was an idiot.   
Quickly, Ray raised his arm, pointing his elbow down, aiming for Gavin's head. "Wouldn't do that, if I were you.", the blonde murmured. "They're going to rip you a new one and we wouldn't show you any more hostility, you know?", he continued as if the second was worse - or even true. God, something was seriously wrong with this man.  
"Done!", he said and jumped back to his feet. "I'm sorry, Ray, but I have to do this. You know the deal. Though you're our guest, you kind of are our hostage as well.", Gavin explained in all honesty. Ray could see how much he really didn't want to do it, his face sad and his eyes mirthless. 

 

"Come on, the bathroom's in here. I'm going to fetch you water and some food. Don't take too long. Oh, and don't even try it. Every way out is locked. We would catch you anyways though. No running with these things.", Gavin said, pointing to the metal cuffs on Rays feet. He had had problems walking with them, there wasn't a chance he could actually run with them still on.   
In the bathroom, he searched the cabinets for anything that he could use as a weapon, but if he didn't want them to suffer a fluffy death from the soft towels, his search was pointless. Even the soap dispenser was secured to the wall. Ray sighed and actually used the bathroom, before Gavin would drag him out and lock him up again.   
About five minutes later, a soft knock came from the door. "Ray? You done?", came the gentle voice of Gavin. Ray washed his hands and opened the door. "Yeah.", he said. The man handed him a waterbottle, which Ray gladly took. He had been thirsty for quite a while, but he refused to drink from the tap, knowing he would get something a moment later. "It's not poisoned.", Gavin assured him, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. Ray shrugged. "Thanks. I mean, Yolo, right?", he said and take a huge gulp from the bottle. The water was chilled and it was a welcome sensation in Ray's throat. 

"All right, let's get you back to your room.", Gavin said, avoiding to refer to the room as a cell. He guided him with a gentle hand on Ray's back through the corridor, back to the still open door. Ray fought against shying away from him. He had to remind himself that it was a good thing that the Brit was still friendly towards him. Even if Ray questioned his lifestyle, he couldn't loose the one person still being helpful in this situation.   
In his cell, a small tray waited for him on his bed. In a plastic bowl, a huge amount of chinese noodles was served with chopsticks. "Didn't knew what you like, so I got you veggie noodles. Tell me next time, okay?", Gavin apologized sincerely.   
"It's fine, thanks.", Ray smiled. He sat down on the ground, leaning his back to the bed and grabbed the bowl from it. "I eat everything, really. Thanks for being to thoughtful."  
Gavin was still in the room and Ray looked up to him. The man waved his hand towards Rays feet. "Want me to take them off?"  
Ray nodded. "That'd be nice. Hey, what time is it?", he asked. Gavin took out his phone. "Almost five. Probably should hurry up, then.", he said. He tucked the phone away again and then proceeded to take of the cuffs from Ray's feet. "If you behave, maybe I can get you a clock.", he said.  
"What is this?", Ray then burst out, narrowing his eyes in confusion, and Gavin's head shot up to meet his eyes. "I mean - what do you want from me? There is no money to be gained, and you aren't after it anyways. You could've robbed that bank, but you didn't. Why am I here?", he went on. He just needed to know. It made no sense, there was no reason he should be hold hostage. "You can't turn me in, either! You're wanted yourself! Can't walk in the next police station and turn me in. So why am I here?"  
Gavin smiled. "You're our guest. But you haven't quite behaved like one yet.", he said, playing with the cuffs. "I promise, we're actually great hosts."  
"Gavin, you coming?", Jack asked from the door. "Coming. Later, Ray!", he said cheerfully before he left. The door fell into its lock. The system beeped a few times and Ray could hear the heavy bolt snapping inside of it. 

 

The building was quiet for the longest time and Ray finally gave in to take a nap on the bed. Sleeping the time away was better than staring at the walls, trapped not only in the room, but also in his own mind. The conversation with Geoff had stirred up memories that Ray had so far tried to bury. Sure, he couldn't forget the first, but apart from him, the names were gone, the faces blurred, only the feeling had stayed. And damn, he wasn't sure what that feeling even was. He felt guilty, but at the same time, he didn't. He liked it, but he hated it. And it started to haunt his dreams again.   
He would be lying if he said he fell asleep easily that evening and he'd be lying even more, if he said i was peaceful. He tossed and turned quite a lot, waking up drenched in cold sweat, disturbed by his own screaming. When he couldn't deal with it any further, he started walking in circles like a trapped animal. Which, ironically, he basically was right now. He even started chewing on his nails, a bad habit that he thought he broke years ago. But here he was, biting down on his fingers, nibbling on his nails nervously. He even started hearing the smallest noises in the dead silence of the room. Then, he panicked. The situation hit him in the guts with full force, jumping onto him knees first. He couldn't get out. What if something happened to him? What if they forgot about him? He could starve or have some kind of episode, he could have a stroke in here, an undiscovered aneurysm could pop and he'd be dead within minutes. He could pass out, there could be a fire, ...

 

By the time the door opened again, Ray sat in a corner of the room, his knees pulled up to his chest, his elbows resting on his legs and his hands buried deeply in his hair. Michael entered the room, looking for the captive, who was by now shivering like a twig in the storm. With a few quick steps, he was in front of him, dropping to his knees immediately. "Hey, Ray?", he called out to him, cringing on the unnecessary rhyme. He didn't react.  
Carefully, he touched one of his knees and tried calling out for the boy again. "Ray?" Still, no reaction. He turned around, calling out to the others: "Guys? I think we should get Caleb again. Something's not right with Ray!"  
Jack and Geoff appeared in the doorway within seconds. "What happened?", Jack asked while Geoff crouched down next to Michael. "He's not reacting to me. In any way. Just sits here.", Michael reported.   
"Jack, go call Caleb. Tell her to get her ass over here as soon as possible. Then, grab some cold water for him, please.", Geoff instructed and the redhead left. Then, he turned towards Michael. "I hate to ask, but can you go and wake Ryan and Gavin up? Might need all the help we can get.", he asked.   
"Sure thing."

Geoff sat down next to the Puerto Rican and started rubbing small circles onto his shoulder, murmuring the small reassurances he now knew off by heart. Michael was back first, with Gavin in tow. The boy was looking rumpled, only in his boxers and an old tshirt, his eyes full of worry. "What's going on?", he asked, his voice still sleepy and thick with his accent. "Come on over here. Take my place, will you?"  
Gavin nodded and plopped down on the ground that Geoff deserted. He even went as far as throwing an arm over their hostages shoulders, pulling him close. He touched his head to Ray's and started murmuring directly into his ear. His free hand wandered up into the dark hair, gently tugging on the cramped hands that had settled in there until they finally loosened up a little.  
"What can I do?", Michael asked and Geoff looked over to the sitting pair. "Just stay with them, please? I think Gavin might nod off again. Need you to take care of him then. But he seems to have the boy under control."   
Jack came back with the water for Ray and handed it to Gavin, who sat it aside in a safe distance, but still in reach if Ray should need it. Michael sat down on the wall opposed to them, watching over the two younger men.  
Ryan finally showed up, fully dressed again. He took the scene in confused, but before he could say a word, Geoff mentioned to him and Jack to follow him into the kitchen. "Help me set up the things for Caleb.", he murmured quietly.


	5. Chapter 5

This was getting ridiculous. Gavin was draped around their hostage like a blanket and, as soon as he reacted, Ray had pulled him even closer. It had been in need and he did it subconsciously, but it happened none the less. And Michael didn't like it one bit. This was not a thing to be done. This whole situation was not a Gavin-thing to do in the first place! He wasn't supposed to be comforting their fucking hostage like an old friend, or even lover. So when Caleb arrived, Michael was glad to pick up Ray and drag him back into their kitchen where she would examine him properly. The second he was back at Gavins side, he picked him up like a child, his legs wrapped around his hips, supporting his weight with his arms. He pressed his whole body against the other, and rested his lips against the Brits neck. "Come on, Gavin. I know how tired you are. Let's get you back to bed, shall we?", he murmured against his ear.   
Gavin nodded and Michael took him away to their bedroom. "Possessive much?", the blond finally whispered when they were out of ear shot. Michael grumbled.   
"I just did what all of you constantly do for me. Time to pass it on.", Gavin said, wiggling out of Michaels firm grasp. His bare feet touched the ground and he pushed away slightly from Michael. "I don't like how we're treating him."  
"Well, idiot shouldn't have gotten himself into this situation in the first place, then.", Michael ground out angrily. The other touched his chest lightly. "I think he didn't bring it on himself. I think I might have.", Gavin admitted quietly.  
  
Stunned and a little confused, Michael watched as his friend padded away towards the room they kept Ray in, eventhough he had just been there. Then, he rolled his eyes and walked back into the kitchen to the others. Geoff and Ryan stood to the side, silently discussing something while Jack was helping Caleb with Ray. The young Puerto Rican sat on a chair, wrapped into a blanked and with a steaming mug in his hand. He answered some question Caleb had asked him. The women exchanged a glance and turned around so Caleb could whisper something into Jacks ear. She nodded in response.   
Finally, both of them walked over to Geoff and Ryan and Michael decided to join them.   
  
"So, he had a panic attack. Says it's been his first, so you might want to reevaluate his quarters or something.", Caleb begun, already pissed off. "Really, I don't know shit about this. I'm not a psychiatrist! I can sew your fucking wounds, get out your bullets, but I ain't trained for this shit. Already told you to find someone else for it."  
The woman turned around, about to storm of. "What do we do with him?", Geoff asked.  
"I don't know. Treat him better, I guess?", she bawled and then stormed off.  
Michael let out a low whistle. "Damn, that girl's angry.", he commented. "You thinking about finding a capable psychiatrist, Geoff?"  
"Nah, we already have one." He smirked as he watched Caleb leave, then he was glancing towards Ray. "Put him back in his room for the night."  
  
Michael turned around, not believing what he heard. "What?"  
"You know, just lock him back in. And turn the lights off.", he said, smiling towards Ryan. They shared a knowing look. It finally clicked in Michaels head. "You've been planning this! You let him stew in his own thoughts!", he accused, his anger fueld. Pointing a finger at Geoff and Ryan accusingly, he went on:"You want to break him." And then, the turning cogs in his head came to a crashing stop again.  
"You fucking did this to Gavin.", he accused quietly. "That's exactly what you did to him when he got here. You fucking assholes!", he now all but yelled.  
Pained, Geoff held up his hands in defense. "No! Fucking damnit, no! That's not what happened to him and you know it. I don't want Ray to end up like Gavin, I just need him to loosen up more. I know exactly how to handle this. I have a plan. You need to trust me on this one, Michael."  
Michael was now all but steaming. His energy was overflowing, powered by his anger and his thoughts, suddenly a lot of things had clicked into all the wrong places. "Fuck this, and fuck you, Geoff.", he said, trying not to yell at him. Then, he also stormed off.   
  
  
He had found his way into their small locked arsenal. He needed to let out some steam or he would end up killing somebody. So he grabbed what felt right at the moment and stuffed it into a bag. Then, he searched for Gavin, who was still in the cell. "I need to go. Gav, you're coming with me? A night out or two, only the two of us. Just _away_ from all this." He didn't say he wanted to make sure that he was alright, that he could handle the situation and that he wasn't hurt by the others, whatever they might say.  
"No, I need to stay here. Make sure Ray's got it nice in here.", he answered, twiddling with a spare blanket that he had moved into the room. A quick glance around told Michael that he had picked up some books and a lamp, as well as a digital watch to bring into the room. Michaels shoulders sagged. "You're not staying in here with him.", he whispered, afraid to say it out loud.   
"Nah. Besides, Ryan wouldn't let me. Couldn't, even if I wanted.", Gavin laughed quietly.   
"You'll be alright, right?", he breathed out. Gavin nodded. "Will you?" He pointed to the bag.  
"Of course." He pulled him in to what meant to be a quick hug, but turned out into a long, desperate kiss. Neither of them complained though. "I need to go. I'll call you.", Michael finally said and turned to leave.  
  
He quickly found his car in the garage and drove down the roads to the mountains. Some time off would calm him down.  
  
  
  
Ray felt worn out. He was wrapped in a blanket, a cup of hot cocoa in his hands and an extra bottle of water lazily carried under his arm. He shuffled along besides Geoff, who was leading him back to the room they were trapping him in and he felt to weak to fight it. He had never had a panic attack in his whole life, and it wasn't something he would want to repeat, like ever again. But he was positive that he'd be passing out, as soon as he hit the mattress, so he wasn't worried to repeat it right away. "Need to go to the toilet first, buddy?", Geoff asked him.  
"Yeah. But not your buddy.", he answered weakly. He dropped his blanket and the water to the floor and made his way over to the bath alone. He downed the rest of his cocoa and let the mug fall to the ground, not caring that it cracked into small pieces on the floor.   
Geoff waited for him at the door, ready to guide him over to his cell. He was surprised to see Gavin sitting on his bed.  
  
"What is this shit? Get off, I'm tired.", he mumbled, grabbing his blanket from the ground. Gavin smiled at him. "Just wanted to make sure you're okay. See if you need anything."   
His fingers dug deep into the soft fabric in his hands. He remembered how pathetic he had been earlier, searching the warmth of the man. How he had clung to this disgusting freak in his need for human closeness. He decided this had been the last time, he'd ever had a panic attack. "I don't need anything from you. Fuck off.", he said. He didn't need him. Not his friendliness, not his smiles, not his comforting touches. He didn't want anything to do with him anymore.  
Gavin looked a little disappointed, standing up slowly. "Alright then. Good night, Ray. Sweet dreams.", he said, smiling softly but with big, sad eyes. "See you in the morning. I'll be coming for you.", he then assured before he left the cell and closed it.   
"Fuck you.", Ray mumbled and made his way over to the bed.  
  
  
Morning came faster than Ray expected. He's been asleep not even a minute after he'd laid down and slept a deep, dreamless sleep. So when his shoulder was shaken roughly and a voice urged him to wake up, he'd simply turned around and grabbed the pillow over his head. He wasn't ready to get up just yet. But then, Ray remembered where he was and what had happened the day before and sat straight up. This wasn't his home. The person touching him wasn't a friend. He was a hostage and he still had no idea why.  
"Come on, we're having breakfast now. Then, we're moving out of this shithole.", Geoff informed him. He held out what looked like an old tshirt and some sweatpants to him and Ray took them, irritated by his words.  
"Where're we going?", he mumbled, still a little groggy. He searched for his glasses that he had simply dropped the evening before. Geoff must've caught on, because he bent down quickly and retrieved them for him.  
"Home.", Geoff simply offered, a mischievous grin gracing his features.   
  
Ten minutes later, Ray sat in the kitchen area between Ryan and Jack, munching on some soggy cereal. He had changed into the sweatpants, noting they were to big on him, but so was the tshirt and it helped hiding the fact that his pants were slowly inching down his hips. Neither his ankles nor his wrists had been bound together, and he was surprisingly allowed to walk around on his own will. Not that it helped him with escaping, true to Gavin's words, every exit had been sealed off. But at least Ray had tried.  
"Still no message from Michael?", Ryan asked over his buttered toast. Nobody answered. The air in the room changed, a sudden tension was all to apparent, but it wasn't addressed either.   
"Thought we might drop by Ray's place for a while. Gather some clothes and stuff like that.", Geoff said instead. He clearly avoided the topic. Ray couldn't help but feel a little peak of hope at the new topic. His flat meant a way out of the situation. It meant his hideout, his own weapons, his long planned and carefully studied escape route and most of all it meant a chance!  
"Good idea. Pick up some personal items as well, will you? You and Jack should take the jeep, then.", Ryan encouraged him and the feeling an Ray's stomach sank again. Of course they didn't meant to take him with them. Gavin leant closer to him, across the counter. "You need anything special?", he asked in a conversational tone. The way they just assumed he was okay with all this made the bile rise in his throat. "You mean besides my peace and freedom?", he asked snarkily.   
Gavin giggled a little, the first time this morning. Something must've been on his mind, since he hadn't been all over the place or made his comments about everything the way he did the day before. But Ray actually couldn't care any less. The more the Brit was occupied whit whatever was on his mind, the better.  
"It's a shame we're leaving already. Got you some stuff for your room, have you noticed?", Gavin continued, his mouth stuffed with toast. He sprew crumbs all over the counter as he spoke, some almost dropping into Rays bowl. It was disgusting. "No, I haven't seen.", he replied after a while, when Gavin's attention was still fixed on him.  
"Really. It's a shame.", he said again, then turned towards the others. "You heard anything from the three stooges?", he asked. "Nothing of importance. They keep calling though. Can't take our main route back today.", Geoff informed him.  
"So, no fancy cars either?", Ryan said, grinning. Jack just shook her head. "Michael might've taken the Entity anyways."   
Gavin groaned. "Aw, man. I wanted to show Ray.", he complained and Ray's eyes darted towards him. Whatever situation, he'd give a lot to even sit in a car like that. All he knew were shitty second-hand, family friendly cars. Actually driving an Entity was like a far away dream.  
"There aren't even enough seats for all three of us, Gav.", Ryan chuckled and Gavin grinned. "Yeah, well, I just wanted to. Besides, I could've sat on your lap!"  
  
Ray was amazed how familial they acted and how they actually included him in the family by simply talking to him like a friend and not like a hostage. They joked around and made fun of each other, especially of Gavin and, to some degree Jack, and they actually tried to make him feel comfortable around them. But Ray wasn't convinced by their friendly demeanor. He had in mind what they did to him. What they did to everybody in the Lombank and how they terrorized the city with their actions. He wasn't fooled by their laughter and friendliness, not by the way they approached him. But he still couldn't wrap his mind around it and they freaked him out.  
  
"All right, boys. Let's get going.", Jack announced, clapping a hand on Ray's shoulder lightly.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to thank everybody who takes his or her time to read this fic. That is still really amazing to me.   
> A special thanks goes to everybody who leaves me a comment or a message. I enjoy reading them greatly, but I'm horrible at responding. I'd love to answer everybody, and I'll try to do so in the future. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this part, though it was a bit shorter than what I usually go for.


	6. Chapter 6

Once again, Ray's hand had been bound together, this time with actual handcuffs. Ryan was leading him out of the apartment into the garage, only stopping at the door, where he had to type in a code to open it. The Entity was indeed gone and while Geoff and Jack stood next to a green Jeep, they were heading towards a purple Compact. Ryan rattled at the door once, but it was locked. "Why does he always do that?", he murmured slightly annoyed.   
"We're heading out. See you lot later!", Jack called out to them when she took the drivers seat in the jeep. Geoff gave a small wave, when they drove past them. Ryan waved back, his eyes flickering to Ray for a second. Ray just stood, staring at one of the other cars, an old and dirty SUV. When the gate closed after the Jeep, his head turned to the hideous purple car in front of them. "Why this one?", he asked the older man.   
Ryan shrugged. "What's wrong with it?", he counter questioned as he leant on it, patting the hood slightly.   
"It's a monstrum. How could one choose just _that_ car?", he grinned.  
Ryan laughed. A full on, deep laugh, not a shallow, throaty chuckle. "You know, you're kind of right. That's an awful car. But it's the one we're taking, so shut up about it.", he finally said, once again patting the car.  
  
Gavin strolled out of the corridor with a hum, walking up to them with a big grin. "Alright, ready to go?", he asked them and Ryan rolled his eyes. "We were ready ten minutes ago. What took you so long?"  
"Had to find the keys.", he admitted quietly. Then, his eyes moved to Ray. "Oh, and also this. You need to put it on again. Sorry.", he said, reaching in his pocket and pulling out a black blindfold. Ryan gave Gavin a questioning look and the younger man nodded in response. Ray shuddered in thought of what exactly they just had communicated silently.   
With a quick move, Gavin unlocked the car and held open the back door for them. He made quick bowing motion and Ryan socked him onto the arm for it. Gavin squealed, making those noises again, then he winked. "'ello, my name is Gavin, I'll be your driver for the day.", he joked, forcing an over the top British accent. This time, Ray actually smiled, until Ryan shoved him towards the open door. Right, _that_.  
He slid over the first seat and the middle one, struggling with the seatbelt and then turned towards Ryan, who had taken the other seat. "A little help here?", he asked, still with the belt in his bound together hands. He couldn't exactly move his upper body fully around and still be comfortable. The older men grinned and locked it in place before he adjusted his own seatbelt. Then, he leaned over again and pulled the blindfold over Ray's eyes.  
"Alright, let's hit the road.", Gavin chimed from the front. He turned on the engine, when Ryan suddenly yelled: "Wait! Gotta grab something real quick."  
Within seconds, he was out of the door, closing it forcefully with a loud bang that made Ray jump slightly.  
  
"So, everything okay, Ray?", the Brit asked, drumming his fingers on the wheel. Ray shrugged. When he gave no answer, Gavin kept talking: "Ah, I guess it's all weird, right now. But don't worry. It'll be over, soon."  
That had Ray inhaling sharply. _It'll be over soon_? Well could his day get any better.  
  
"Ah, bloody hell Ryan, we waited for _that thing_?", Gavin mumbled under his breath and Ray assumed the older man was on his way back. True to that, the door opened a second later and the car dipped, when Ryan scrambled back in. "Got it.", he exclaimed somewhat happily and Gavin just groaned in displeasure.  
"I really wish you'd burn that thing already.", he mumbled a minute later, after he took a sharp right and the thing Ryan had in his hands slipped out of his fingers.   
"Nah. I told you, it's a great disguise."  
  
  
20 minutes later, they were parking somewhere in the city, that much Ray could figure out. They were still in the car, but the noises from passing cars and pedestrians were still audible, also they made no move to actually leave the car. The Brit was humming some song Ray couldn't place and Ryan tapped his fingers on something in front of him. "How much longer?", he asked impatiently.  
"Haven't got the go from Kerry yet.", Gavin answered and Ray knit his brows. Just how many people were working for them? It was hard keeping track on all the names that got thrown together. "How hard can it be to secure our way?", Ryan grumbled, now decidedly closer to Ray's ear. He must've leaned towards the gap between the front seats.   
"'s got to clear out the roads for Jack as well.", Gavin defended Kerry - whoever that was.  
  
A moment later, a phone started ringing, a generic pop song as it's ringtone. "Ayy, that's Micoo!", Gavin cheered and practically jumped out of the car - the door flying open while he still undid his seatbelt. A second later, the car dipped and the door slammed shut again. "Thank Christ.", Ryan exhaled besides Ray.  
  
  
Another 20 minutes later, they were on the road again. When Ryan asked about their missing member, Gavin had just said "Everything's fine" and then silently started the engine again. Ryan had mumbled something in return, but neither Gavin nor Ray could understand him. When asked, Ryan did not repeat himself. After that, not a single word was exchanged until they entered some sort of underground parking lot.  
"Jack and Geoff are already here.", Gavin informed, lacking his otherwise present enthusiasm once again. He killed the engine and both of them left the car without any further words, leaving Ray in it.   
"Eh.. guys?", he called out for them. Ryan had done something to his hands, so he couldn't exactly lift them to shove up the blindfold or undo his seatbelt. "Come on, don't leave me here..", he tried once again, without any luck. 'It'll be over soon', came Gavin's voice into his mind and Ray got nervous. Were they going to blow up the car? Had they noticed that they had made a mistake taking him? Did they take that specific car because they tried to get rid of him?  
Ray's breathing sped up, he began to sweat nervously. This wasn't good. This wasn't the way he wanted to die, this wasn't-  
The door besides him opened and Jack spoke up: "Alright, listen. I'm going to remove your restraints, but we decided to leave on the blindfold for while longer. Only so you don't freak out, okay?", she asked gently, leaning over him. Ray nodded. Being able to move was worth everything to him right now.  
True to her words, she undid his seatbelt and then the cuffs that had been secured to something in the front seat. She tugged on his wrist, making him step out of the car. She guided him grabbing his arm by the elbow and walking right next to him over a smooth surface. The muffled voices of the other three echoed through the parking lot, but Ray ignored whatever they were saying. He had to concentrate on his steps anyways. If anything, he was just glad that he wasn't going to be blown up. But whatever awaited him next just made him anxious.   
  
  
He was led into an elevator with terrible music that made him cringe. Ray noticed how they sped up fast, but he had no idea how far they actually got up. A soft female voice informed him that they reached the 'top level', and after a 'ding', they stepped out. Jack still had her hand wrapped around his arm and led him on, warning him about a step down after a few steps. Then, she asked him to slip out of his shoes, which he did, feeling a bit awkward. "All right, let's get you into the living room.", she said friendly enough.  
Jack led him on, past Gavin and Ryan who exchanged some words, and finally informed him about a couch which was right behind him. With an outstretched hand, he made sure she wasn't joking and then sat back onto the soft, cushioned couch. "Hey, Jack?", he called out for her, when he heard her leaving.   
"Yeah?"  
"When can I take of the blindfold?", he asked. He realized he shouldn't have, he should just have done it when he was alone. Silently, he cursed himself for being such an idiot. Jack chuckled.   
"Well, I guess you could do it right now, but I'd recommend you to wait just a moment longer."  
"Why?"  
It was Geoff who answered: "Just want to throw some stuff out, you know? Make sure everything is nice and clean - wouldn't want to make a bad first impression."  
"Little bit to late for that, no?", Ray muttered and Geoff cackled a bit.   
  
Knowing he wasn't alone, Ray just leaned back to rest for a bit. He could never know when he got to relax the next time, and as long as he could just lean back and close his eyes, he wouldn't complain. Jack and Geoff were working together, presumably cleaning up, exchanging a word every now and then.   
Footsteps from behind the couch announced another person entering the room. "The room is ready. Just need to set the new code and we're good to go", Ryan let the others know, and Ray flinched a bit. Another room got prepared. The panic attack from the day before was still very present to Ray, and he sure as hell didn't want to try it again with a new room. "Where did you drop the bag? Need to get it inside the room, before Gavin goes all home decor on it."   
Geoff burst into hollering laughter, Jack soon joining in. "Oh god, does he really? Ah, man, I've gotta see this.", Geoff laughed out. "I'm gonna get the bag, need to see that little fucker myself."  
   
  
They left, only Jack stayed with him. She made her presence known by humming a little song to herself, and Ray was quite thankful for that. Not, that she stayed with him, but that she let him know that she was there. This way, he couldn't make a fault by trying to run or messing things up further in general.  
  
A few minutes passed, and the only interruption from his thoughts was the laughter from Geoff and Ryan and an occasional protesting squawk from Gavin that carried over to them from another room. Ray bit the inside of his cheek. Jack seemed to be quite reasonable, maybe he could get some information out of her.  
"So, Jack. Can I ask you something?", he tried, turning his head into the direction he thought she might be.   
"Shoot.", she said, a little further to the right than he guessed. Ray adjusted his direction. "What are you doing? In general, I mean."  
Jack chuckled a little. "Are you telling me you moved to a strange city, after you murdered some people, and didn't even double checked for their residing criminals? Also, don't you read the news?", she accused him with an amused  scolding tone.  
"Well, I tried to stay out of trouble. You know, Newman and all that.", Ray answered, a cheeky grin spreading on his lips. It was enough to make Jack laugh. Good, Ray thought, laughing meant she wouldn't kill him any time soon. At least he hoped so. Still, she didn't answer her question. "Would you mind getting me up to date?", he requested as sweet as possible.   
She dropped whatever she was holding in her hands and sighed. Then, she plopped down besides him. "You really have no idea, huh?", she mused, not waiting for an answer. "Let's just say, somebody gotta run the city. They can be glad it's us, we're actually quite a humble lot. We just do what we need to do to keep the city clean. Though we technically are criminals, we keep a lot of trouble out of the streets, regulating the activities that we don't approve of. Since Geoff and I got our foot down here, things changed. For the better, mostly."  
"You're just making that up to make me feel better, aren't you?", Ray asked, thinking about her words a second. She just patted his shoulder and stood up again.  
  
  
Some time later, Geoff came back and guided Ray to another room, leading him on by his arm like Jack did earlier. "Right, before you take of that blindfold, just know that we absolutely can't let you go after that anymore. Ever. On the bright side, you'll be able to hang out with us for a while.", he grinned.  
Ray reached up for his blindfold. Did he really want to take it off? He did want to leave, as soon as possible. If he did though, he was sure they'd had him hunted down faster than he'd be able to even leave the city. He didn't know much about them, but from what he witnessed, well, at least on their professional layer, they had that shit down. On the other hand, they would have it their way anyways. There was no escape from him, if at all, he would have to pray to be rescued from them. Hadn't they mentioned him being a hostage on the news report? The cops would probably try harder to catch the group. The problem was, if Jack was right and they did help the city in some ways, wouldn't the corrupt system cover them up?  
  
With a sigh, Ray slid off the blindfold and blinked a few times. The light was blindingly bright, at least after such a long time having his eyes covered. He was standing in a light flooded room. One wall was entirely made out of glass and he had a clear view of the city from above. He hesitantly stepped closer to the window, staring outside. Not a single noise could be heard, eventhough he was  right above a busy street. They must've been at least 20 levels above ground, most likely even more.  
He took his time to take in the view before he turned around to look around in the room itself. In the doorway, three of his five kidnappers stood, big grins plastered all over their faces. "Told you he'd totally loose it, if we'd just let him see everything.", Geoff murmured to Gavin and Jack who just chuckled a little and nodded in agreement.   
Ray paid them no further attention, instead he scanned through the room. A big single bed was pushed to one of the walls, a half filled bookshelf next to it. The other wall had a small table with two comfy looking seats next to it. On the table laid a green duffle bag, which he inspected next. He glanced to the others briefly, when he opened it, but when nobody objected, he took in it's contents. It contained his personal items like a watch that he got from his father, a dried rose he once got from his mother and a family photo that showed not only his parents and siblings, but also his grandparents and a few aunts and uncles with their children aswell. Well this was strange.  
"I'm never gonna leave, right?", he asked, sadly.  
  
The others exchanged some looks, nobody daring to say something. Gavin sucked in his bottom lip, worrying it slightly. It was Jack who finally said: "We'll see about that. For now, you should make yourself at home."  
"Your clothes are in the drawer next to the door.", Geoff informed him and they both left, leaving only Gavin behind.  
"If you want to, I'm showing you around, boi.", he offered. "No more closed door."   
That was only applying to his own door, Ray guessed, noticing the missing plural. "Well, Ryan said, he wanted to change the codes around, so there might be some constraints, but if you choose to leave your door open, the door stays open. I can promise you that." Well wasn't that comforting.  
  



	7. Chapter 7

The tour that Gavin gave Ray consisted of the main three rooms that Ray would need to use. A small guest bathroom similar to the one in the other building, an abnormally large kitchen and a living room that stretched along an entire side of the building. Three out of the four walls were made almost entirely out of glass, with the only exception of the area around the flatscreen TV that was mounted on the wall in the exact middle of the room. Gavin had promised him he could use the TV whenever he felt like it, or play some games on the consoles. They weren't monsters after all. Ray just huffed out in annoyance.   
  
What followed next was a quick introduction to the door locking system and Ryan gave him some of the needed codes on a list. It turned out that every door had between three to five individual codes that each had different settings to them - from locked one-sided (with each side a different code) to completely open to completely locked and one safety code to unlock all locks. Naturally, Ray didn't get one of those - not even for his own room. He guessed that Ryan would like to have the option to lock him in if necessary. He did, however, get the codes to more of just the three rooms Gavin had taken him to see. Apparently, he had access to the roof aswell, he just didn't know what door to go through, if he considered to throw himself of the building. That was kind of frustrating.   
So he did what he thought was best for him. He stayed in his own room - cell, he had to remind himself -, laying on the bed and staring out of the window at the passing birds. If he didn't cause any trouble, he would be safe until somebody rescued him. Hopeful, he went to check the news every now and then on the TV in the living room, but after a while, he realized that nobody was interested in the Lombank robbery anymore.   
  
Eight days passed, in which Ray stayed mostly in his room. He gave up locking the door though, because everybody else had the code for it anyways. More often than not, somebody sat in there with him, talking to him, but he ignored every word spoken to him. It wasn't worth listening to Gavin's constant rambling anyways. Seriously, that guy came up with the stupidest shit. The only time that he did listen, was when Geoff walked in and sat down on a chair with a serious gaze. He'd asked Ray if he took the shit he was dealing with and Ray had no idea how he even knew that. Then again, he'd found out about his real identity in about an hour, so him knowing about his side job wasn't that big of a surprise after all. "So much for being a _Newman_ ", he had said and Ray cringed. In his defense, he did try, really hard. But you just couldn't live of a shitty job at a 24/7 gas station. He needed to pick up dealing again. That was the one thing he was good at, the only thing he had some sort of knowledge.  
He did blaze it up from time to time, but he assured Geoff he wouldn't have to deal with some kind of withdrawal. He was very careful about it, for fucks sake, he knew how bad you could end up with it. Saw the addicts every day, after all.  
  
  
It was on day nine of his capture, when finally something happened that drew him out of his hiding. It was the return of Michael that stirred his captors up. Ray was in his room, sitting back against the window, staring at the door for once, when he heard the now familiar ding of the elevator. It was strange, because nobody had left the apartment that day. Heavy footsteps resonated through the hallway and then another pair of lighter footsteps approached from the other direction. Both came to an abrupt stop, still quite a distance apart from each other. "Oh for fucks sake.", Geoff exclaimed. Then the lighter pair of feet started again, hurriedly towards the other.  
"Took you long enough.", he heard the muffled voice of Geoff exclaim. "'were worried."   
"'m back now. 'm sorry.", Michael had answered, muffled and much quieter.   
"We're sorry, too.", Geoff told him in response. Then they both walked away together. The last thing that Ray could hear them say was "Any progress?" and then "None."  
  
Half an hour later, when the following commotion in the living room had died down, Ray decided it was time to watch the news. So he stood up, his limbs numb from all the time spent in the same position, and made his way over. Only Ryan and Michael were left in the room, which was strange in itself. Usually, the older man avoided it and, given the reactions Ray had witnessed when the redhead called, it was weird that the others weren't with him right now. The pair sat together on a large couch with their backs turned to him. Michael's head rested on the older's shoulder and they were quietly talking to each other. It was strangely intimate and Ray felt bad for disturbing them. But then he remembered he didn't give a fuck and cleared his throat loudly. Ryan turned his head around, looking at him. A grin spread on his lips. "Well look who's awake."  
Ray ignored the comment and declared: "I just wanted to watch the news." Ryan just mentioned towards the currently unoccupied TV. "Go ahead."  
  
It still felt weird to plop down on the couch and grab the remote in his hostage-takers flat. He switched the channels until he found one which repeated the news over and over. There was nothing interesting on it, nothing that concerned _him_ but the other two seemed interested in something a politician had to say. He would keep that in mind. When the news started over, Ray stayed where he was, now watching Ryan and Michael out of the corners of his eyes. The redhead was still resting against Ryan's shoulder, the older gently stroking the other's arm. Michael's eyes were closed, but still, he looked troubled. It was a bit as if he was looking for comfort. Ray wasn't quite sure why he left in the first place, but this was definitely odd.  
  
Jack joined them a little later, shortly followed by Gavin. When they entered, the redhead looked up hopefully, but they sat down with a noticeable distance to him. Michael sank back down into Ryan's shoulder.  
"We're taking Henley and Roberts tonight. Kerry got us the needed information. They'll meet up for dinner to discuss strategies in a restaurant in Downtown. We need two teams for capture." Jack stared at the other two and Ray's eyebrows shot up. He knew the names Henley and Roberts. Both were assistants to the politicians Cranley and Murry. He wasn't aware that they were meeting up for strategy discussions. But then again, the entire city was probably one big, corrupt pile of brick and dirt.  
"We need somebody to stay here, for obvious reasons." She gave a pointed look to Ray and he stared right back. There was no reason to shrink back into himself, when he wasn't told to leave in the first place. "Hey, I'm fine by myself. No need to stay behind.", he grinned and earned a slight chuckle in response. "Yeah, bet you are.", Gavin responded with a cheeky grin.  
"Back to business, where're we taking them?", Ryan wanted to know, leaning back into the couch.  
"Here.", Gavin said and suddenly, the other two sat straight up.   
"What?", yelled Michael, while Ryan exclaimed: "Are you insane?"  
Gavin shrugged. "Told him that was mental. But he insisted."  
  
"That means one thing. Michael, who will stay here with Ray, has to prepare the chamber. Ray can help him.", Geoff explained from behind them. Ray hadn't noticed him joining them. Michael was about to protest, when Geoff held up a hand and interrupted him. "Teams will be Jack and Ryan as the alpha team. You'll take care of Roberts. As soon as she leaves the restaurant, she'll be surrounded by four guards waiting outside of the building. Take them out, then get her into your car. Take one of the fancier throw-away cars, then change rides, Gavin and I will set up the Van in the abandoned parking lot outside the city. Make sure to be prepared. You'll be waiting in the restaurants parking lot for her. Team bravo are Gavin and I. We take care of Henley. He'll be going for the helipad, so we're coming from above. We'll be back about half an hour later. Don't start without us. Just keep Roberts blindfolded and scared. we need to take care of them simultaneously."  
Michael still protested, but Ryan silenced him with a nudge to the arm. Then Geoff turned towards him. "The room has to be ready by eight. Team alpha's here ten minutes later, bravo half an hour after that. Lindsay will keep in touch with you.", he explained. The air suddenly changed and Michael sunk back into the couch. "Got it.", he said quietly.   
Ray noticed that Jack and Gavin threw glares towards the redhead, but nobody added anything else.  
  
Then, Geoff was standing right in front of Ray. "Since you expressed an interest in all of this, you'll be helping. You and Michael will be team charlie. Got that?", he asked, a threatening tone in his voice. Ray thought about it for a second. In whatever chaos was about to happen, he could get his hands on any kind of weapon. "Got it."  
  
Geoff smiled happily. "Good. Alpha team, Kerry will guide you through the city. Hit the road and set up at 7:30. Everything else will be taken care of on the road. Gavin and I are heading out for your Van."  
They left through the elevator and silence took over. Jack soon left aswell, setting up their communication devices. They could hear her quietly testing them in another room. Ryan then stood up, declaring he'd better take care of the explosives.  
"Explosives?", Ray asked confused, when the older man was gone. Michael's head turned towards him and he grinned at him with one eyebrow lifted. "Didn't you listen? Throw-away car. What do you think happens with them? You can only push so many cars into the ocean.", he explained.  
"Makes sense.", Ray mumbled, still not believing that they'd blow up a car.  
  
  
  
Around 6 o'clock, Michael went to look for Ray, who had gone back to his room by now. "Let's eat some pizza and then begin with our preparation.", he proposed. Ray followed, a little bit annoyed. He'd just taken a nap, but the promise of pizza was enough to actually guide him out of his bed.   
The food was fine. Not the best he'd ever had but not the worst either, so he dug in. Michael smiled at him from the other side of the table, munching on his own slice. "You'll like the room we're about to prepare.", he commented out of nowhere.  
Ray just frowned. "Don't think so.", he answered calmly. There was no way he could like a room whose only purpose was to keep somebody intimidated. Not after what he had to endure, still has to.  
"No, it's a great room. You'll see. It's clever."  
  
  
He had to admit, the room was pretty cool. It was a windowless room in the middle of the apartment. The inside was grey, mostly. The floor was made of concrete and the walls were uncovered. At least, it looked like that. The whole room was painted like a torture chamber with fake blood sprayed on the walls and floor, even on the ceiling. There were cracks that didn't exist and some mold in a seemingly wet corner - it looked real enough to make Ray shiver when he first entered the room. The best part however were giant, rusty iron hooks that hang from the ceiling, chains that were attached to the walls. But nothing was real. Just props from an out of business filming crew. But god damn, it looked so fucking real.   
"The light's will be dim, so they won't notice the small flaws in the paint. We'll have some background noises running, so they'll believe they're in some water dripping cellar, we have some occasional distant screams and all that stuff. They're going to shit themselves. Now, help me with the chairs.", Michael demanded while he uncovered eight tiny holes in the floor. "This is where we'll secure the chairs. We'll chain that bastards to it."   
  
The chairs were in a storage room that held a large variety of props for the torture chamber. They each carried one heavy iron chair over into the other room and secured them in the floor with a small clicking sound. "Now, what should we put in here next?", Michael asked Ray, leading them back into the storage. He pointed to a table that carried a good amount of different torture devices. "How about something to scare the living shit out of them?"  
Ray shrugged. He didn't like idea of treating hostages that way and he felt really uncomfortable with the way it made him grin, just a little bit. The prospect of fooling two politicians, even just their assistants, was somehow amusing. He could see, how his captors enjoyed it. And, if he was completely honest with himself, he would enjoy it, too.   
  
  
They spent way too much time discussing the small details, but they ended up with an incredibly believable and scary as hell, fake torture chamber. Then, a female voice informed them via intercom, that team alpha was on their way back and Michael guided Ray out of the room. He excused himself to go change into something a little more fitting for the occasion, so Ray plopped down in the main room and just admired the view from this side of the building. He hadn't gotten around to do that since he got here.  
It didn't take long, until the elevator was moving and Ray turned back around to watch Jack and Ryan come back. The sight that greeted him made his insides turn. When the doors finally slid open, they had a woman trapped between them, each gripping an arm of hers and dragging her limp body with them. Her head hung low, lolling around on her shoulders, but her face was covered with some kind of black sack. Ray was also pretty sure, that there was a faint line of blood dripping out from beneath. Somewhere on their way, the woman must have lost a shoe, most likely it slipped off while her foot was dragging across the floor, like it was currently doing.  
"What the fuck happened?", he asked horrified, his voice cracking around the edges and growing way to high towards the end. Neither Jack nor Ryan answered him, they just shoot him a slightly amused glance. _Right. He was in no position to interfere._  
  
The pair moved Roberts to the chamber, and there was some noise from inside it. Ray didn't need to have a look to know they'd chain her to one of the chairs. Michael came out of one of the rooms Ray had no access to, just a moment later. He was dressed in some shabby grey pants and a shirt that might have once been white. Both were worn out and loose, dirty and sprinkled with red dots. He knew that it's supposed to look like blood, but when he remembered how especially Ryan looked like when they'd taken him, he couldn't cross out the thought that it might be real blood. Michael flashed him a quick grin and moved past him. For the first time, Ray noticed a small, almost faded red mark at the base of his neck and his eyebrows shot up. Wherever Michael had been the last couple of days, he had fun for sure. More than Ray did anyways.  
  
Muffled whimpers and quiet crying pierced through the otherwise silent apartment, only interrupted by some angry shouting from Michael. Vague threats fell of his lips easily, while he guarded the room. The others hade gone, having to change themselves until the rest of them would arrive. They'd dressed up in a similar way, clothing dirty and loose. To be more horrifying, or just to protect their identities, Jack had picked up some masks, all the same model, and handed them out to Michael and Ryan, who'd gladly accepted his.   
Then, finally, a voice on the intercom announced the arrival of team bravo. And only five minutes later, Ray was sitting in a corner, trying to block out the screams from the torture chamber. Now, he finally began to wonder, _truly wonder_ , why he was treated with so much geniality.


	8. Chapter 8

Ray found himself on the roof of the building. Once again, it was Gavin who was taking care of him. He hadn't changed his clothes, but instead was about to clean up behind the rest of his group, when he found Ray all miserable and immediately grabbed him by his wrists to drag him away from all the noises that escaped their chamber. At first, Ray flinched, tried to get away from him, maybe even believed that he himself was going to get dragged into the room, but no. Gavin led him to a door next to the kitchen. "Wait a second.", he instructed and rushed off, though Ray couldn't hear his words over the sounds of torture that resonated through his brain.  
Mere seconds later, Gavin had been back with a huge blanket and a waterbottle in his arms. Quickly, he shoved the bottle in Ray's arms and opened the door. With a hand on Ray's back, Gavin urged him up the staircase that was right behind it. There was a second, unlocked door at the top of it, and when Ray opened it, he breathed in the first breeze of actual fresh air in what felt like years.  
  
Gavin guided him over to the helipad - _holy shit, there is actually a helicopter on top of the building. They do have an helicopter!_ \- and unfolded the blanket. In one smooth motion, he captured Ray with it and together, they sat down on the raised ledge. Ray once again flinched away from him, but he was effectively trapped in the blanket with the other man.  
Softly, the man whispered to him, and Ray found himself leaning towards the soothing voice. After all, the gentle murmur that Gavin gave had been the only constant in his life since he got here. He hated that he'd gotten used to it and he hated how much he didn't want the other to stop. He hated how he leaned against Gavin's side and rested his head atop his shoulder and closed his eyes and breathed in - and calmed down.  
  
For the first time, he found himself actually listening to the words that Gavin formed. "It's okay, you know? It's all just staged. It's not real. They resisted for a while during the capture, but they're not getting hurt in here. They're just lead to believe it. You've seen the room. It's not real. It's fine."  
Ray's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me right now? Do you actually believe the shit you're talking?", he asked heatedly. "That's still torture, what you're doing down there. You're still abusing them, for fucks sake. You're so full of shit."  
After that outburst, he pushed his way out of the warm blanket and jumped off the ledge. He raised a hand accusingly towards his captor. "You can keep telling yourself that everything you do is fucking okay, but don't try and feed me that shit. Because I know it's fucking wrong."  
  
Gavin held up his hands in defense, the blanket pooling around his hips. "No, listen to me. It's for the greater good! I know it's hard to understand right now, but you'll see it, soon. You'll understand. And they're going to get dropped off at their homes with their families, and they're going to be fine. Just believe me with this, it's going to be fine."  
Ray shook his fists in anger. That idiot couldn't be serious! He couldn't be that oblivious to abuse, could he? "You have no right to put them through that kind of treatment! They're humans after all, and you're abusing them!", he yelled out.  
"Well, you should have thought about that, before you helped prepare the room. You're as much to blame as we are, aren't you?", Gavin countered. The scary thing about it was that Gavin was right. He _had_ had fun, even liked the idea of playing them  in the first place. So, right now, what was the difference that made Ray disagreeing? Actually hearing the victims? Having seen them? But no, Ray had known how they'd be treated, and, to his defense, he hadn't liked the idea as a whole. But he participated nonetheless. He felt like he might threw up soon.  
  
  
Luckily, Gavin caught up on that quickly and shoved the bottle back in Ray's hands. "Drink something. Don't throw up. Okay?", he asked in a soothing voice. Ray unscrewed the bottle and took a sip, forcing the cool water down while Gavin gently rubbed his back and whispered "That's it" and "Good" over and over again.  
"Fuck you", Ray chocked out and shrugged the hand off his back. He just wanted him to shut up already and leave him alone - Ray had to figure this out before he loses his damn mind. But the man had other plans: "Why don't you just admit that you like it? You've got nothing to lose, after all. Hell, you can only win here! Just - think about it, Ray. You've done it yourself, you-"  
"Shut the hell up, Gavin!", Ray now all but screamed. That little fucker was not allowed to speak of him that way. Ever. "You don't know nothing about me, so shut the hell up and fuck off!"  
  
  
  
It was truly a wonder, but Gavin left him alone after that. He just shrugged and turned around, mumbling a "Think about it" and then left. In a split second decision, Ray threw the bottle after him, hitting the frame in the exact moment that Gavin slipped through the door. It was kind of satisfying to hear the man squawk in surprise and see him hastily jog down the first couple of steps.  
  
After that, Ray sank back down into a sitting position and closed his eyes. It was still early in the evening, and the traffic down on the streets was the only thing that he could hear above the wind that swept over the rooftop, drowning out every other sounds that might escape the building itself. The sun began to set slowly and he was getting cold in only a tshirt and shorts, but he refused to pick up the blanket again. He just wanted to sit right where he was and figure out why he took a sick pleasure in this game that he couldn't win.  
He wasn't sure how long he sat there, shivering and cold, but when he had finally given up and grabbed the fuzzy blanket and moved next to the helicopter, the sun had already set and a few stars appeared on the still darkening sky. He had taken a look around the rooftop, but once again, there was nothing that he could use to his advantage in any way. For a second, he contemplated that he just wasn't creative enough and that surely, there had to be something that he could use as some sort of weapon or maybe to exert some sort of pressure on his captors. But no, except from that huge ass helicopter that he couldn't even open, there wasn't anything on the entire damn roof.  
  
  
Ray must've zoned out at some point, because suddenly, there was a steaming mug right in front of his face. He blinked a few times and finally stretched his hands out towards it. It took him a second, but he realized that, of course, the mug wasn't magically hovering right there, so he looked up and met a smiling Jack. "Hey.", she said. "Thought you might want something to chase the cold away. Cocoa."  
He nodded appreciatively in her direction and took a sip. God damn it, that must've been the best cocoa that he's ever had the pleasure to drink. A satisfied noise escaped his mouth and Jack chuckled softly. Ray felt the warmth of the creamy liquid spread through him, but he was about 90 percent sure, that _that_ had nothing to do with the blush that he felt creeping up his cheeks. "Yeah. Thanks.", he mumbled.  
  
The woman pensively looked at him, her eyes narrowed and her head slightly angled to one side. Slowly, Ray put the mug down, watching her closely. Up until now, it had never been a good sign for him, if one of his captors came up with ideas. So he lost no time to mentally prepare himself for whatever was about to happen.  
But, again to his surprise, she just shrugged it off and finally moved to sit down in a respectable distance to his right. Then, she just stared off into the distance, fully immersed on some point somewhere on the sky. Probably a star, Ray thought and looked up in the general direction that Jack was looking at.  
  
  
Soon afterwards, the mug was empty and Ray was paying full attention to Jack, who hadn't moved a muscle since. But something about her had kept Ray looking, as if to not miss a thing when she finally decided to do _something_.  
"I like nights like this.", she murmured out all over sudden, her eyes still fixed on that one place at the sky.  
Ray shrugged. "It's alright, I guess."  
She turned her head around to face him with a smile. "It's nights like this, that the city is absolutely beautiful. Like I could never be more satisfied than in nights like this. It's pretty dark already, but the city is still buzzing with life. It's still warm from the day and haven shows its true face. I just really like it like this.", she admitted half lost in thought, waving her hand in the general direction of the sky.  
And yes, Ray had to admit, the night was pretty nice, just the wind was a bit of a turn off. Also having somebody tortured just a set of stairs away from you.  
  
"Are you done down there? Or why're you up here? With the - politicians, I mean.", Ray asked cautiously. Jacks face fell slightly. "Yes, we're done. They're taking them back to their families. They're ok.", she clarified.  
Ray swallowed. "Good. I mean - obviously not good for them, but I guess good that they've pulled through. Or something like that."  
Now it was Jacks turn to awkwardly rub her neck. "Yeah. Something like that."  
The silence that followed was incredibly unpleasant, and they both fidgeted around for a while. Finally it was Jack who put them out of their misery. "Have you seen the city by night?"  
  
Ray almost laughed. "Well, of course I have. I lived here for a while, you know. Also, I worked mostly in the late evening hours. Selling drugs in shady corners and stuff.", he said, a bit too casually.  
Jack grinned. "Yeah, I know that. But that's not what I meant. From up here. Have you taken a look off the roof yet?", she asked.  
"Oh! I mean - yeah, sure. I've looked past that railing. Looks fine, I guess.", he shrugged it off. What was that about? Was she trying to get him close to the edge of the building? Maybe she wanted to push him off?  
She looked a bit disappointed so he had probably been right with his assumption.  
  
"You couldn't have seen the city properly. Not from up here. Also, not from down there in shady corners.", she declared. Ray rose an eyebrow in question. "Well, I've been walking through the city by day as well.", he defended himself. And why was he even doing that?  
"Still, not the same.", Jack rejected his argument. She stood up with a little jump and twirled around to face him properly. "Come on, let's take a quick ride!", she then exclaimed.  
  
Yes. This was his chance. He could easily escape from a vehicle if there was only one person with him, because Jack would be to busy watching the streets to watch over him. He stood up as well. "Alright, let's head out.", he answered cheerfully.  
The grin that spread Jacks face was infectious. "Perfect. Let's go!", she agreed and turned around. To the helicopter.  
Ray froze. Oh no. Nonono - that wasn't what he wanted. There was no way he'd set even as much as a foot into that thing. He didn't have that big of a death wish after all. That woman must've lost her damn mind if she thought Ray would've fallen for that trick.  
  
Jack had opened up the side and climbed into the cockpit. When she turned her head around to Ray, a big smile was spread across her features, and Ray had to admit, it suited her better than the stoic expression he'd seen her wear most of the time. "You seem excited.", he said deliberative. He didn't like this at all.  
"Yeah, I am. Haven't had that view in a long time. Oh, but don't worry. I can fly the Frogger.", she added quickly when she saw him hesitating.  
"Ah, great. Good to know you wouldn't operate a vehicle that you're not familiar with.", Ray bit, not willing to move as much as an inch closer to that death trap.  
"Really though. I've learned how to. I was a pilot for two years before this became my life. However, I never stopped flying.", she explained patiently. "And I really haven't seen the city from above in way to long. So do me a favor and hop in. I'm gentle, I promise."  
Ray swallowed. Something was really fishy about all this. "You're going to drop me, aren't you?", he asked directly. Much to his surprise, Jack burst out in laughter.  
"Haven't you learned anything, Ray? If we wanted you dead, we would've already killed you by now. There were plenty a'chances. I don't want to drop you. So jump in already."  
No way in fucking hell.  
  
  
  
It was amazing. Ray had kept arguing about getting in the helicopter for another 5 minutes, but finally, he had agreed to take a quick ride with Jack. She had been very excited when he took seat at last and immediately closed the doors, so he wouldn't even have the chance to rethink his choice. She started communicating through the radio with somebody named Kerry, whose voice Ray vaguely recognized from earlier that day. Then she started the engines and they took off.  
Within seconds, they were far above the ground and soaring towards the city center. The streets were all lit up and the cars were tiny moving dots between the darker patches where the buildings were. Jack pointed out landmarks in the city that Ray had seen only from the ground, and, though he was nervous, he moved closer to the window and actually ended up with his hands pressed against it.  
  
"Not bad, huh?", Jack eventually asked and Ray couldn't contain his excitement. "Amazing. No, really, it's great!", he confirmed.  
"I really should fly more often. I kinda miss it.", she then pondered quietly, but Ray caught it nonetheless. "You're not doing it very often?"  
"Not anymore. Gavin does most of the flying nowadays. Shouldn't have taught him, he's gotten better than me. Don't ever tell him I said that.", she added as an afterthought quickly and with a small chuckle. "He'll brag about it constantly."  
"Can't have that.", Ray agreed with a grin, "Shouldn't inflate his head any more, his nose will get humongous." Jack laughed so hard, she nearly crashed the Helicopter into a building. Ray clawed his hands into the seat and sat straight up, having moved back into a safer position far from the windows. Mentally, he promised not to make any jokes anymore while he was in a vehicle with Jack.  
  
Another couple of minutes were spent in silence, with the only exception being Jack communicating with Kerry via radio. When Kerry informed them that the rest of the team was back at their base, Jack flew a big loop and headed back as well. They were still far away from the building when Jack once again addressed him: "So, how do you like working for us?"  
Ray blinked in confusion. Working for them? He wasn't working for them, wouldn't even consider it in a lifetime. "Wouldn't do it.", he answered honestly.  
"You already did. I thought you know that the city basically belongs to us. Whose drugs were you selling, what do you think?", she asked nonchalantly.  
"No.", Ray breathed out in a moment of clarity. "That's not true."  
Jack gave him a sad smile. "Think about it. No stress with rivaling dealers. Good payment and excellent protection. There are even clean-up teams for occasions where you, or any of your colleagues mess up.  That's the deal with our customers.", she explained. "90 percent of all the drugs being consumed in this city are coming from our hoard. That's why there's just one quality out there - the best quality. I'm pretty proud of that."  
"But - there are several drug lords with smaller domains within the city.", Ray argued but once again, Jack gave him just that sad smile.  
"Yeah, they still get their stuff from us.", she then answered. The helicopter slowed down, the building with the helipad already in sight.  
  
"Listen. Why don't you work for us? you're already in it anyways. Payment's much better though.", Jack offered seconds before they were landing. Ray swallowed. "Why would I do that?"  
"Because you'll basically get your freedom back."  
  



	9. Chapter 9

Five days passed. One would think that things would have speed up after Ray’s talk with Jack, but no. The exact opposite happened, everything stood still around Ray, time seemed to have frozen.   
  
As soon as the copter had touched the ground, he bolted. He ran straight into Gavin, who kept the door blocked, but he didn’t exactly care about the hostage at that moment. He had been annoyed, because he had to deliver a message, from Geoff to Jack. Apparently, the older man was _pissed_ , Jack had disobeyed one of their rules, probably concerning their hostage situation. Gavin kept Ray safe from the fallout of the fight that happened as soon as the woman walked inside to face the man herself, by keeping him on the roof for a little longer.  
The apartment was soundproof, but the gunshots that were fired that evening echoed trough the staircase to the roof, and for once, Ray was glad that Gavin kept him at his side. They didn’t talk anymore that evening, and Ray just watched him picking at the corners of the band-aid that still covered the gash on his cheek. He got a peek at it earlier that day. The cut had healed nicely, the stitches were removed already, but the skin around it was still red and a thin crust was still clearly visible. There would be a scar left on the mostly pretty face.  
Ray tried his luck and asked the man if Jack had been serious earlier, them wanting Ray to join their crew, but the Brit didn’t react at all. He seemed determined to not answer, keeping his face blank and just stare straight forward. Ray had even been under the impression that he had to really concentrate to not answer his question.  
  
Even later that evening, Gavin led Ray back inside, the apartment had been eerily quiet. There was no sign of life anywhere, and a few bullet holes covered the wall in their living room. Gavin offered him food and something to drink, before he got locked in his room for the first time in a long while.   
For the next two days, Ray was kept in his room for most of the time. There still wasn’t much to do, but this time, Ray kept pacing around. He’d become far to invested into the groups dynamics, and not knowing what was going on drove him nearly insane. It went as far as him looking forward to the small visits from Gavin or, on occasion, Ryan, so he could ask them for news. But both of them kept their mouths shut, except for the bare necessities.   
Ray did hear shouting though. The actual words were muffled and all kind of blurred together, but the shouting was apparent nonetheless. And the tension that seeped into his room whenever somebody came to care for him was so thick, Ray felt like he could nearly touch it.   
  
Nobody seemed to be on good terms with anybody else anymore, and that didn’t change, when Ray was finally let out of his room again. The crew sat together, yes, but there was no talking, there were none of the touches that they usually kept coming. Their faces were straight, hardened around the edges, and deep shadows hung under all of their eyes.   
It was unnerving, so Ray tried his best to lighten the mood with small jokes. He wasn’t quite sure why he cared so much that moment, but damn did he try to cheer them up. Probably because being held hostage was bad enough, having them in a bad mood wasn’t really an improvement. Definitely not that small pull from within that made Ray want to befriend the crew. Everything but that. God, Ray really hoped that it wasn’t that.  
  
  
  
In the end, it took two weeks after the helicopter ride, that Geoff approached him in the living room, where Ray sat, playing a game on the xbox. When the man sat down besides him, the Puerto Rican almost dropped his controller, but he tried to keep his face as straight as the others had.   
"So…", the gang leader began, while he straightened his vest, before he started rolling up the sleeves of his white button down, revealing the colorful tattoos underneath. Ray couldn’t help but follow the motion with his eyes.  
"I know this might come as a surprise to you," the man continues his clearly studied speech, emphasizing the word ‘surprise’. "but we’ve been talking lately. We’ve done some research about the weapons you used back at home, and here in Los Santos as well. And I thought to myself - let the boy show what he can do. So, what do you say, you wanna go to a range and demonstrate your skills?"  
  
Ray blinked at the man in confusion, until the words finally made sense in his head. “You want to hand me a gun.”, he repeated. Geoff nodded.  
That’s the plan. Take you to a range, give you a gun and see what you can do. Then take you back and discuss your future.”  
Ray still wasn’t sure if they had thought that trough. “A gun. Loaded. In my hands.”  
Geoff waved him off. “Oh, come on. Like you’re gonna shoot us. ‘s not like we won’t be armed or something. Actually, Michael said he’d like to take out his minigun again, so he’ll be bringing that. Just so you know.”  
That silenced Ray for a moment, while Geoff just smirked.  
  
"So, what do you say? Ready for a day out?"  
The prospect sounded like heaven. “I’m so in.” Getting out of the apartment, letting of some steam, showing them how good he was - wait, that wasn’t why he wanted to go. Certainly not. Ray had no intention to proof his worth to them in any way.   
Geoff grinned. “Great. Get ready then.”  
  
  
  
Ray had been beyond excited that he’d been prompted to choose a car, and he’d been happy to pick a buffalo, realizing that he’d have to choose a fourseater, not a twoseater super car like he _really_ wanted, but the buffalo would make a pretty decent alternative.  
To his greatest delight, he’d been neither handcuffed nor blindfolded, and he even got to move around on his own, without being dragged behind by the elbow. When he’d arrived with Ryan and Geoff, Michael was already standing outside of the place, the minigun firmly in his hands. So, no running. Ray got the memo, but he didn’t plan on it anyways.  
  
The shooting range turned out to be a seemingly abandoned little hut somewhere in the hills. Inside, Gavin was preparing a sniper rifle for Ray, his own pistol visibly holstered at his waist. Upon further inspection, Ray realized that the others also had their weapon of choice within reach, Ryan even holding his casually in his hand.   
"Just so you know, the car is decked with C4.", Ryan mentioned, twirling the SMG in his hand.   
"Got it. Don’t plan on running, jeez.", Ray mumbled out, almost rolling his eyes. "Just wanna have some fun here."  
Michael, having walked in behind the others and blocking the door, grinned. “Yeah, you better.”  
  
The range was everything but that. Actually, it really was just an abandoned house, a few of the windows smashed in. Some barrels stood in between the trees around the house, crudely drawn figures painted onto their faces. Some of the barrels were in a bad shape, covered in bullet holes and dents.  
"Huh, I always thought the Fake AH Crew had a fancy training spot.", Ray mused as he looked through the window facing downhill. Ryan chuckled. "Well, you can’t exactly walk into an official range, when your picture hangs next to the door with a sparkly ‘wanted’ sign under it."  
"Makes sense.", Ray admitted. He then walked over to Gavin - not stepping too close, so they wouldn’t assume he’d try something funny - taking in the details of the sniper rifle.  
  
"Huh. That one’s pretty shitty.", he commented, as he stretched out his hand towards it, running his fingers lightly over the steel. The barrel was barely straight, the stock broken, and the scope was missing entirely. Instead, there was just a little mark to guide the shot.  
"Yeah, well, that’s what you get, asshole.", Michael grunted, playing around with his minigun. "Show us, if you can work with that."  
  
  
And Ray did. He took the rifle and positioned himself at one of the windows, placing the rifle on the windowsill. He targeted the closest barrel, just to get to know the weapon, fired twice, and had it down. He figured out that the bullets strayed to the left and the bounce back repositioned the rifle, but at least he didn’t really need the missing scope. So the next 3 bullets went straight into the drawn on hearts and heads on the far away barrels. Geoff hummed approvingly, but the faces of Michael and Ray stayed neutral. Gavin just grinned, murmuring something along the lines of “Knew you had it in you.”  
Jack arrived after another set of bullets, a briefcase in her hands. She put it down on an empty counter, before she kissed first Gavin, than Ryan on the cheek. Ray noticed that the other two weren’t even glanced at, though at least Michael looked a bit hopeful. Then, when she ignored him, his face fell back into an angry, stonelike expression.  
  
"I got you a pistol to try out. I know, not your favorite, but what harm does a little challenge?", the woman then addressed Ray. She opened the case to reveal a beautiful pistol, the handle crafted out of wood, and carved with a delicate pattern. Ray glanced at the redish barrel deciding that he wouldn’t try it out.  
"That one won’t do shit. Looks pretty, but that’s all it’s worth.", he declared. Jack furrowed her brows. "How come?"  
"I’ve seen those kind of pistols before. They’re mainly holstered on a wooden plank and hung up on a wall. They’re more for show than anything else."  
Jack smirked, then grabbed the pistol herself and aimed for the last intact lightbulb in the room. The shot rang loud in their ears, and the clinking of glass sherds falling to the ground just a second after were almost inaudible.  
"You shouldn’t judge the potential danger just based on looks. This one is mine, and it’s a perfect shot.", she said, before turning the pistol around and offering Ray the handle.   
  
  
Ray was honestly surprised. He assumed everything that would be offered to him today would have been utter bullshit, but apparently, they had other plans for him.  
Slowly, he reached out to the gun, taking it in his hand. Then, he inspected it closely, letting his eyes roam over the small details on the handle.  
"Come on, don’t make a show out of it, man. Just shoot.", Michael urged him to go on, clearly annoyed.   
He aimed at one of the barrels, but Gavin pointed out some weights that hung on low branches on the trees. “Try them, they’re way smaller.”  
  
The first shot missed, the handling entirely different from the sniper rifle, but then, Ray got used to it quickly. He didn’t hit the target every time he fired a shot, but he had to admit, that hadn’t been the guns fault.   
  
  
They had a few different guns for him to try and show, but his clear favorite was the very last one. They had him try out an RPG, and he blew up one of the barrels. There was nothing left, except from a big crater in the ground. Honestly, he hadn’t been that happy in a long time. Just the feeling of the weapon in his hands, the power it came with, seeped trough his fingers and trough his veins into his brain. He loved it.  
The praise he got from the Brit tickled just right as well, and was certainly a pleasant feeling as well.   
  
Sadly, there was noting else to try afterwards, so Ray was led back to the car, while the rest of them started cleaning up after him. The adrenaline slowly left him on the way back, and then, the situation finally caught on with him. Somehow he didn’t regret not having tired to run, regardless of the minigun somewhere behind him. He wouldn’t have tried without that. And that fucked him up even more.  
Ray couldn’t believe he had grown used to the group and their messed up lifestyle, and even more, he couldn’t even begin to grasp, that he somehow liked it, liked them. The mere thought alone pained him, and he began to hate his brain for it. But then again, there was nothing he could really do about it, and, if they asked again, he wasn’t sure if he’d decline another offer to join. He hadn’t exactly dismissed the first one, he just kind of bailed, anyways.   
But he wouldn’t be the one begging for them to let him join. He wouldn’t approach them, if they showed no further interest.  
  
  
In their apartment, he was back locked in though. Geoff apologized, to be fair, and he promised that he’d get out soon after. Half an hour later, Ray could hear the others arrive, and they started a conversation in the living room. At least, Ray figured, they were all talking again.   
Ray saw his chance. He knew the room he was in was being observed, so he started looking for the hidden microphone. He found it eventually, so he made sure to face away from the door, as he crouched down low over it and spoke quietly into it.  
"Hey - is anyone there?", he asked and waited. He didn’t expect an answer straight away, so he wasn’t surprised when nothing came as a reply. "Please - I just need to know something. I know there is somebody. Just - answer me, okay?"  
Still, there was no answer. Ray sighed, but then, he had an idea. He tapped onto the microphone a few times before he gently blew into it. Then, he whistled lowly.   
"Goddamnit, Ray, what do you want?", came a strained voice over a speaker somewhere above him. Ray smiled, happily.  
"I just need some answers. If that’s okay."  
The voice didn’t sound happy at all. “I don’t know, if that’s a good idea.”  
"You’re Kerry, right?", Ray started, and the silence that followed him was almost deafening. He smirked.  
"So, Kerry. Do you know what the guys plans are? With me, I mean. Jack offered me a place with them, so.. is that still a thing?"  
The speaker cracked. “Would that be all?”  
"No, wait. I need to know, if they still want to offer me a job. Because, you know, if I’d be to join them, I’d wanted to know beforehand."   
  
There was, again, no answer. Just as Ray was about to give up, there was a new cracking in the line and Ray waited.   
Then, after a minute of white noise, there was an answer. “I have no idea why, but for some reason, they want another member. You seem to fit their demands.”  
"Yeah, no idea either.", Ray agreed.   
Kerry cleared his throat. “I can’t tell you anything, though.”  
Ray nodded. He supposed that the guy could see him, somehow. He didn’t doubt, that there was a camera around, somewhere, as well. “Yeah, you said that. You know - there are still a lot of things I’d want to know, if I were to join them. I think I would want to know, as soon as I join.”  
"So, you want to join?", Kerry asked, a little taken aback.  
"Yeah. Well, only if I get the info I need first." Ray rolled his eyes. This guy was a little dense, apparently. How hard could it be to understand, that he just want’s to know more about them? Kerry wouldn’t even have to give him answers, just deliver the message. Ray doubted that he could give satisfying answers anyway.  
"Huh.", Kerry said, before the line went dead.  
  
Ray shuffled over to the door, pressing his ear to it. He tried to hear what the crew was talking about, but he somehow figured, it would be his performance. Of course, Ray couldn’t make out the exact words, but the voice that was currently talking belonged to Michael. Then, Ryan answered him, his words were a little clearer. Still, Ray couldn’t make out the exact words, just syllables and the changes in his intonation.   
Then, a brief silence took over, and Ray could only guess, that Kerry got his message out, because suddenly, everyone was talking at once. Good.  
  
  
After all, they let him wait. Even after they had quieted down again, nobody was coming directly to him. A few paced footsteps could be heard outside of his room, but there was no telling, whose feet traveled up and down the hallway in front of his door.  
Impatiently, Ray started pacing himself. With nothing else to do but wait, his mind started to wander again. He started doubting his thoughts, started second guessing his almost made decision. He _had_ wanted an out of all this after all. That’s why he left his hometown, why he left everyone he loved behind. He didn’t want to do it anymore. But look at him now. Where would he be, if the crew hadn’t picked him up, forcefully or not? He’d still be selling drugs, eventhough he now had a real job to cover it up. He’d still live in a hellhole, antisocial and most likely starving. God, he didn’t want that anymore. He was so tired of it, even more now, since he’d seen - and lived - a comfortable life in a wide, luxurious place.   
  
But that wasn’t right. He’d tried to live an honorable life after all. That’s what he wanted to change. He wanted a safe place in life, Los Santos was just supposed to be a station on his way.   
He’d somehow lost his new goal of life on his way trough the city. He himself got lost in the overpowering vibe of life itself, everything crashing down on him and making him stray from his chosen path.  
  
  
Ray’s thought were interrupted, when the door finally opened. Once again, he had no idea, how much time had passed when he was drowned in his own mind. Jack and Geoff stood in the doorway, and that in itself was a surprise. But the good sort of a surprise, Ray thought, and it hopefully could only get better now.  
Jack closed the door behind them, and they stood awkwardly hovering in the entrance. Ray faced them, a smile tugging at his lips, but he was determined not to show it. So he just blanked his face, staring at them.  
  
It was once again Geoff who cleared his throat. “Hey, kid, we’ve been thinking. You’ve been pretty good at the shooting range and-“  
"Yes.", Ray interrupted.  
"What? Eh - yes. So you’ve been a good shot, and we’ve been kind of looking for an-"  
"Yes.", Ray interrupted again, and Jack chuckled at Geoff glaring at him.  
"For fucks sake, let me at least finish, god damn it. So. As I was saying", Geoff shot him a warning glare, "we’ve been looking for a good shot. Snipers, mostly, but you seem to have that down. So, kid, you’re in, if you like it or not. Don’t screw up."  
Geoff left the room, without waiting for any kind of response. Through the open door, Ray could hear him silently curse, though. “Little asshole. Fits right in with the rest of those bastards.”  
  
Jack smiled at him. “Well, that’s a thing that happened. You’re a member of the Crew.”  
With a solemn look on his face, Ray turned to face the woman. “Didn’t see that one coming.”, he grinned and gave her a cheeky wink. She erupted in hollering laughter in return, and Ray found himself liking the sound of it.  
  
"What now?", he then asked. Jack nodded her head towards the door.   
"Now you get initiated.", she answered, and Ray blanked, this time around out of shock. "Initiated? What does that-"  
The speaker above them cracked a bit, as Kerry’s voice suddenly answered him: “Oh, good luck with that. I’ve been trough that. It’s hell. Literal hell on earth.”  
The woman next to Ray just laughed, before she patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. You’re getting to do something else. Let me show you the heist room.”  
  
  
The heist room was very much like a conference room. An oval desk stood in the middle of a small room, six chairs shoved under it. There were a few more stacked in a corner of the room, next to a huge whiteboard that was covering most of the wall. Two other walls were covered with various maps of the city and the surrounding land, some with markings like crosses and circles, some had lines drawn on the streets, and some had pushpins sticking in them. Very few had crude drawings on them, and it took the professional vibe right off the room.  
"This is the heist room. Everything we need to plan is right here. For your initiation, you’re gonna plan a small heist. There is a convenient store at this corner that you might be familiar with. That’s your target.", Jack explained, while she took out a pink pushpin from a box and pushed it in one of the maps.   
Ray looked at the map and grinned. It was the store he’d been working in. “Easy.”, he said, before he started planning. **  
**


	10. Chapter 10

Suddenly, Ray had access to the most of the apartment. He peeked trough all the previously closed doors, taking in all that was there to see. There were some very interesting rooms, the most interesting though, Ray wasn’t allowed in yet. The armory. Instead, he had a detailed list, provided to him by Ryan, so he could plan everything into the last detail. Ray had a feeling though, that having a plan and actually following trough with a plan, were two entirely different things.  
The list, however, was something out of a wet, kinky dream. There seemed to be no limit for Ammo, a wide variety of guns and pistols, SMGs and even some special weapons like grenade launchers and RPGs. God, if Ray could, he’d sleep in that room every night.  
  
Another room was Ryan’s workshop. The walls were extra thick and fortified with steel cores. It’s where he was making all of their explosives, and to that room, Ray had access. Ryan even went as far as to give him the grand tour, showing him different kinds of explosives, the big bangs and the small bangs, as he called them. Then, he showed him some of the scrap pieces laying around, having memorized the name of every small detail and part. As he started geeking out a little bit to much, Ray left him, not wanting to deal with the excited man.  
  
  
During his time planning, he was often accompanied by one of the crew members. But this time, Ray didn’t feel observed or even judged, they were actually helpful. They offered advice or made suggestions, helped him out when he wasn’t sure if they had everything they needed. And in the end, he used the time with them well. He kept the conversation going, very lightly at first, but deepening over the time.  
  
He was planning his heist with Michael, when the subject of his former boss came up.  
"If he’s there, he’ll recognize you, right?", Michael asked, looking at a picture of the man that Kerry had somehow managed to take. He’d begrudgingly provided Ray with all the photos he’d ask him for, pissed that his initiation was so much easier than the one Kerry had to prove himself in.  
"Probably. I’ve worked for him a little under a year. He always hated it if we were late, and even more when somebody left. When I started not coming in for my shifts, I might have become his new nemesis.", Ray agreed.  
Michael’s brows furrowed. “So, we gotta take him down.”, he said, noting something down on a notepad.  
"Yeah. I kinda want to barrel in his office and take that asshole down myself. God, that fucker made me do so many ungodly shifts. And then he cut down my hours when I asked for more, when I needed money."  
Michael smirked. “You need to come up with something for that then.”  
"Yeah. I was thinking, we’re coming in from the back anyways, so why not make a quick detour? Where did I put the layout again?"  
  
  
Ray shuffled trough the papers that he’d spread over the desk, until he found the plan he was looking for. It contained not only the layout of the building, but also the ones of the surrounding ones, thanks to Kerry’s work. He’d spent the extra five minutes to pull up the other plans as well and cut them together, to create a suitable emergency exit map.  
He tapped on the managers office. “See? Right here. We’re coming from the east side, trough the storage. There’s just this hallway right here, and his office is the second door on the left. If we’re quiet enough, I can slip in to his office and strangle him from behind. His desk is right here.”, he drew a rectangle next to the wall, “It’s right in front of a one way window, so he can watch us do our work from there. Or, the customers, as he liked to defend himself. Whatever.”  
Michael nodded. “Strangle him, huh? You kinda need muscles for that, and dude no offence, but you don’t really have those.”  
  
Ray made a unhappy noise, but he wasn’t mad at the man. “Right. So - make sure he can’t move, maybe tie him up, then come back for him later?”  
Michael shrugged. “If you say so.”  
"If you got a better idea, spit it out already."  
"Nah, man. It’s alright. Sounds fine."  
Ray rolled his eyes. “I’ll come up with something later.”  
  
There was a knock on the door and Jack entered the room. “Wanna talk about the cars?”, she offered with a genuine smile. Rays mood lightened up drastically.  
"Hell yeah! I’m so down for that."  
"Well, I guess that’s my sign to leave.", Michael mumbled and stood up. He made his way to the door reluctantly.  
Ray frowned. “Why? You could stay and help.”  
"Nah, it’s fine. I’ve got other stuff to do, anyways.", Michael replied.  
  
Jack shrugged. “He’s pissed at me. He’ll come around eventually.”, she said, sounding a little sad.  
"Hey - mind to tell me, what exactly is going on with you guys? I mean - for the heist, of course." Ray coughed a bit. That was the worst he ever hid his curiosity.  
Jack chuckled a bit. “It’s fine, really. I understand that you’ve got questions. I mean, you _do_ plan to stay with us, right? Only natural you’d want to know.”  
Ray rubbed his neck. “Yeah. Right.”  
Jack sat down in the chair that Michael just vacated. “Well, things have been a little tense for a while now. Basically since you’ve eh.. gotten here.” Jack didn’t look at Ray and rubbed over her left arm for a second. Then she continued: “We’ve had some fights about - well, you mostly. But nothing too bad. Until Michael got pissed of and run off. Then the dynamics went a little uncomfortable. I have no idea what exactly went down between Gavin and him, there was something about jealousy.” Jack fiddled a little bit with the layout plan, studying the hallways and alleyways, tracing some of the paths with her fingers as she continued: “Anyways, we all got gradually more pissed, and the opinions on what to do about your… visit… diverted greatly. But Geoff had his mind already made up, and he wanted you to join. Thing is - he wanted to go slowly. Like, ridiculously slow. Like, you’d be still locked up by July next year slow. I wasn’t very fond of that idea, and you already know what happened next.”  
  
Ray watched her face scrunch up a little as she explained. However, he still wasn’t happy with the answer. “Actually, I don’t know what happened next. I was locked in, remember?”  
Jack looked him up and down with an amused smirk. “Huh. I figured you’d eavesdrop as much as possible.”  
Ray flushed a little. Well, that wasn’t entirely false. “Yeah. Couldn’t hear shit, though. You gonna explain?”  
  
"She disobeyed the rules I set, and I wasn’t happy with that. And then she got pissed when I called her out on that."  
Geoff stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame, his tattooed arms crossed in front of his chest. He obviously listened for a while, judging by the sour expression on his face.  
"Well, obviously my plan worked better than yours.", Jack shot at him.  
Geoff took a step into the room, letting his arms drop to his sides, his hands curled into firm fists. “I wanted to give him time to make up his mind without any influences! And you drag him into the chopper!”  
"And he damn well liked it! You’d have him sit in his own juices until he grew grey hair!" Jack was now standing as well, having taken a few angry steps towards the older man. Ray raised his hands in a meek attempt to stop the fight, but even if he did say something, they wouldn’t have heard him.  
"You didn’t give him a chance to make his own decisions! You forced it down his throat!"  
"Did not! I didn’t force him to anything, Mr. ‘You’re in if you like it or not’!"  
"He already knew he was gonna join!"  
"And he did, because I actually told him we’re interested in him!"  
  
The argument went on for quite a while and Ray couldn’t do anything about it. At some point, he decided not to listen anymore, and he tried to concentrate on the plans and maps right in front of him.  
"Don’t you hate it, when mom and dad are fighting?", a voice suddenly asked close to his ear. Ray spun around in surprise, coming face to face with Ryan. He smiled weakly, pointing to the arguing couple next to them with his thumb. They had stopped forming entire sentences, only starting them before they got interrupted by the other.  
"If you had just-"  
"Well, I didn’t, but you always say-"  
"I know what I say, but for fucks sake, once-"  
” _Once_ I make something different, you-“  
"We had a plan, damnit! If you’d listened-"  
Ray frowned. “Will they be okay?”, he asked Ryan, quietly. The other man had sat down besides him, pulling a Los Santos city map towards him.  
"Sure. They always make up. Don’t worry about them."  
  
Ray cleared his throat. “Not that I’m interested in it in any ways, just, because of the Crew - a-and the heist, of course.”, he stuttered, but Ryan just raised an eyebrow at him. “Right.”, he said. Then he pointed at the map. “This is a great point to start the heists. We’ve done it a few times. Meet up is easy, because there are no passersby.”  
Ray furrowed his brows. “I’ll keep that in mind.”  
"I can’t deal with your bullshit right now, Geoff!", Jack suddenly yelled, furiously jabbing her finger into the tattooed mans chest. Then she turned around and stomped out of the room. Another door was slammed shut.  
"Fine!", Geoff yelled, his voice cracking around the edges, before he, too, stormed out of the room.  
  
  
"What on earth - what is going on?", Ray asked, listening for anything else.  
Ryan sighed and stood up. He walked over to the window, pointing out. “Believe me, they need to do that. They always do. Now they’re going to fend of their stress, usually Jack takes the chopper and Geoff drinks himself senseless. When she comes home, they’re going to make out and everything is back to normal.”  
  
Ray’s ears burned from the blood suddenly streaming to his face. “So - they are - uh…” he couldn’t quite find the right words he wanted to say. Sure, he had his suspicions about their relationship, but honestly, he had no clue. There was just to much going on between all of them to keep a tab on everything.  
Ryan chuckled. “Yeah.”, was all he said about that matter. “Also, after the heist, split us back up, and let us drive home separately. Confuses the cops and draws less attention.”  
  
  
Ryan had left again and Ray was left with his thoughts and the maps spread in front of him. He sighed and sat back on the chair, crossing his arms. Really, this crew was much less organized than he initially thought. Nothing was marked together on one map, but stretched over several. It was a mess.  
  
Defeated, Ray searched for a map with nothing drawn onto it. He found one, which was actually usable, only a few words were written on its side. Then, he proceeded to collect the data from all the other maps and plans he had, marking all the safehouses with small blue pins, getaway paths with red lines, backup Ammu-Nation stores in green, houses of important people in yellow. As he was going to push in black pins into previous targets, he realized that the map was already chaotic enough, eventhough he had planed to include hiding spots and areas which were to avoid to it. He resigned and undid his work, understanding as to why they used a new map for their heists every time. Still, it would have been nice to not have to search for everything, each time somebody needed to plan something.  
  
  
After a while, Ray was wandering trough the room, taking in the city plans that were pinned to the walls. He noticed lots of tiny holes where pins had once been placed, but later been removed. Upon closer inspection, Ray realized that, eventhough they weren’t marked colorcoded, they still showed only one specific aspect of the city. There were all the safehouses on one map, Ammu-Nations on another and so on. One map though was different. It had some random places marked, and Ray couldn’t figure out what they stood for.  
Having finally understood their system, Ray sat back down with the maps. They had basically given him all the loose maps they had from previous heists, some of them must’ve been fairly old, judging by the smudges and crinkles. The data he received was outdated.  
"I get it know.", he mumbled to himself. "They’re not only testing my will to heist with them, they want to test my dedication and attention as well."  
  
Pleased with himself, he went back to planning a heist with a smug grin on his face.  
Geoff came in the evening, a little drunk - okay, actually a lot - but still devoted to his job. “So, you found everything alright?”, he asked, the words slurring together a bit.  
Ray nodded. “Well, there was some issue with old crap, but that didn’t take long to take care of.”, he replied, trying hard not to rub it in.  
The man hiccuped a laugh. “Yeah, there’s tons of old crap in here. Time for some refurbishments.”  
He shrugged. “‘s pretty messy in here.”, Ray then agreed.  
"Right. Always gets. Every time.", Geoff explained, raising a hand to gesture vaguely around in the room. "Everybody leaves a fucking mess."  
  
Ray’s brow furrowed. “So, who usually does the planning then?”  
"Everybody, I just said that. Usually, there’s a problem, ‘n then somebody comes up with something, an’ we discuss it, n’ then that person plans some more. Then we discuss it again, an’ then we’ll wing it." The man plopped down in an empty chair, reaching for Ray’s plan to look over it.  
"I see you’ve had help. ‘s clearly fucking Ryan’s input.", Geoff said after inspecting it closely.  
Ray shrugged. “I liked the idea. A quick meet up to make sure everyone’s all right.”  
  
  
"There’s one thing that I need, though.", Ray said after a while.  
"And what’s that?", Geoff wanted to know.  
Ray sat back, stretching his legs under the table and arching his back to make the bones pop back into their proper position. “I can plan a heist alright. But it won’t do shit, if I don’t get any information about the crew I’m planning for. Basically, I need to know your skills and weaknesses, so I can assign everybody the best job possible.”  
  
Geoff grinned. “Good boy. You’ve got it all figured out, huh?”, he praised, clapping a hand on Ray’s back, forceful enough to push him forwards a bit.  
"So - you gonna give me a list or something?", he asked.  
The man laughed. “Nah. Gotta find stuff out on your own, kiddo.”  
  
Ray grit his teeth. How exactly was he supposed to do that? He couldn’t take _them_ on a range and make _them_ shoot some targets. Basically, he would have to rely on intuition, and to be honest, he was kind of bad at that. He stood up, frustrated, and left the room to wander around in the apartment for a while.  
  
  
It took him not more than five minutes to run into Gavin. Well, he didn’t actually run into the man, he was just kind of there, when Ray entered the living room. The way to large PC was on, and the man was playing a shooter on the xbox, getting his ass kicked badly.  
Without being asked to first, Ray grabbed a controller and plugged it in. He plopped down on the couch next to Gavin and joining the game, the first opportunity he saw.  
  
They played for a while in pleasant silence. Well, silence as far as raging curses and squawks go, but at least there wasn’t talking per se. It was a good distraction from the task at hand, and Ray used the time to clean his head. His had had long since begun to spin, layouts and paths and possibilities circling through his head and mixing together, jamming his every thought.  
So having a moment to clear it all out and reset his brain was nice, to say at least. And as the fog cleared, he actually felt his batteries recharging and he could think straight again.  
  
As Ray shot Gavin’s character on the screen in the back, he realized that he didn’t need a list. He’d been the crew’s guest for quite some time, and he had to admit. Even though he tried not to get closer to them, he had gotten to know them. And he knew things about their preferences from their conversations and, before that, the day of his capture, the day at the Lombank. He’d witnessed a heist -and now that he thought about it, he still had no idea what all that was about.  
"Hey Gavin, can I ask you something?", Ray tried, hesitantly.  
  
The Brit shrugged first and then nodded. “Sure.”  
"What was in the briefcase that you stole from the Lombank?" Straight forward. He wanted answers, and he was serious when he said he’d want his questions answered before he joined the crew.  
Gavin sat up straighter and paused the game. “Where’s that question coming from?” He avoided looking at Ray though.  
"Dude, I just want to know. I’m asking myself all the time!" That was a lie. But as long as Gavin was convinced and would answer him, that was besides the point. Still, he wanted to know, what tiny thing was worth that kind of risk. Because let’s be honest - that robbery could have gone wrong very bad very quickly. How they’ve managed not to fuck it up was beyond him.  
  
Gavin rubbed his neck, still not looking up to face Ray. “Well…”, he began hesitantly, “I can’t tell you the bloody details right now. But here’s the thing. You can’t exactly steal something that is yours already. We just had the that tiny bit of information stolen from us and they thought it would be save in a bank.”  
"Who?", Ray asked, inching closer to the other man.  
Finally, Gavin dropped his hand and turned to look him in the eyes. “You didn’t think that we wouldn’t have enemies in this city, do you?”  
Ray bit his bottom lip. The thought honestly hadn’t crossed his mind. Of course, a group of criminals couldn’t just run a city from the underground without stepping on some other criminals toes.  
Gavin laughed. “You’re so naive.”  
  
Without meaning to, Ray grit his teeth. “Wouldn’t have to be, if anybody would just tell me that stuff! I’m supposed to be a part of all this, right? This is not just some sick joke before you just kill me in the end, or is it?”, he barked, unsure where that just came from.  
"No, of course. We want you, Ray, believe me.", Gavin was quick to reassure him.  
"Then I have a fucking right to be informed of all those things, or I’ll fuck all this up, like big time! And nobody seems to realize that, I’m just staying in the dark about everything!"  
Gavin was on him within a blink of an eye. He shoved Ray back down into the pillows of the couch, and Ray realized that he was about to raise and probably do something stupid. Gavin didn’t hurt him though, didn’t threaten him. He just pressed him back down, his eyes soft and his smile calming. “Relax, Ray. You’ve got to trust us that we’ll tell you everything you’ll need to know. We’re not putting you in danger and we’ll make sure you’ll always have all the information you’ll ever need and more. And, as soon as this heist is done with, there are no limits left. Gonna answer all your questions, alright?”  
Gavin was still smiling. He squeezed Ray’s shoulder briefly before sitting back up and picking up his abandoned controller. Then, he unpaused his game and continued as if nothing had happened. Ray just stayed where he was, laying on the couch, his head pressed into Gavin’s thigh.  
And then, he made another decision. He’s going to trust them, needs to trust them, before they’ll be able to trust _him_ , and Ray somehow is really eager to match their expectations. And he will. He’ll do anything to make that happen.  
  
  
  
It took him four days to figure everything out. He has the city map in his head by now, every street and path and shortcut mapped out in his brain. He knew exactly where to go, and where everybody else was supposed to go at any given time.  
They met in the heist room, Ray standing in front of the whiteboard, a marker already in his hands. Kerry and Caleb were listening to them via intercom, as well as Lindsay, the third member of the guardians. As they call themselves. That, or Team Thuggs. Guardians it was, then.  
  
The rest of the active crew was nestled in the room, sitting around the table with drinks in their hands. They were laughing and joking, as Ray went a last time over the plan in his head.  
"Al right, here’s the plan.", he announced before clearing his throat to get their attention. Geoff nudged Michael in the shoulder to get him from stop talking to Ryan.  
"We’re going to hit the store tomorrow at 4 pm. I know, I know, basically prime time for sunlight, but listen." He hold up his hands in defence, before Ryan could say something in protest. "That’s usually the time where nothing happens. 4 pm is a dead time. Only a hand full of customers, only one register open. But - here’s the thing. The manager is there. He’ll arrive at 3:30, make his round in the store and then go back to his office. We’re not going to only take the register - that’s not worth it, at all. We’re speaking 300 maby 500 bucks max. What we’re going to do instead is, taking the safe."  
  
Ray paused a moment to let that sink in. “Now, this is how we’re going to do it. Distraction. Team One: Jack and Gavin. Jack heads in the store and browses. She’ll have a big purse, where she’ll carry her and Gavin’s weapons. SMG’s. So, big purse, really. Gavin will talk up the clerk, distracting him. Search for headlight fluid or something. Confuse the hell out of him. You can do that.”  
Gavin gave a grinning thumbs up and Michael snickered quietly. “Yeah, he can.”, he added. Ray smiled.  
"Al right. Team Two: Ryan, Geoff and I. We-" Michael interrupted him in protest: "I’m on my own? Not fair, dude!"  
"Just keep listening, okay? As I was saying. Team two. We’re heading inside trough the storage, behind the store. Entrance is in the ally on the back, right here." He marked the spot on the map, making sure Ryan and Geoff saw the place. "It’s secured with a numeric code, but the manager is a lazy ass. He’s got this thing where he only changes it once a month, and he basically just counts the months. So January is 1234, February is 2345 and so on. Not a big deal."  
There were grins on everyone’s faces. “Well that’s convenient.”, Geoff states.  
"That’s what I was thinking. So, we’re going to make our way trough the storage, no big deal. Then, we’re going to quietly enter the office, right here,", Ray pointed to the layout of the building, "and take the manager by surprise. Gag him and then the fun part starts. Intimidation. Ryan, that’s your job. Make the guy figuratively shit his pants. Or literally. I don’t really care. But, we need him alive and able to move his right hand. He needs to open the safe, only he knows the combination."  
Ryan was polite enough to at least raise his hand, before he asked his question: “Am I wearing a mask?”  
Ray nodded. “I’d very much like you to. In a perfect world, he doesn’t see Geoff’s face, only your mask and me. ‘Cause I want that fucker to know that’s me.” He’ll stay alive, go to the police. Let them know _he_ was robbing the store. With the AH crew. Make it official.  
"Geoff, when the safe is open, you’re walking out the front, giving Team One the go, then come back to the harvest. Jack and Gavin, clear out the store. This is the part where you knock out the clerk and start throwing the people out. I’m talking panic. The few people in the store have to leave, they’ll call the cops. From that point on, we’ll be on the clock. Don’t stop for the register, there’ll be nothing in it that’s worth the time. Now, this is Michael’s part."  
Michael whooped. “Finally. Thought I wouldn’t get to have fun at all.”  
"I told you to wait. You’re having a fun part, believe me. So. The moment Gavin and Jack cause the panic, you’re going to come in. I need you to deck out the entire front of the store with C4 as quickly as you can. Then, you’re going to grab the knocked out clerk and take him back to the office, where the rest of us are taking the money. Gavin and Jack, that’s you two as well. You’re going to drop the guy and then head out in the back. Get away vehicle for you is a bike. Take a Sanchez or something. Quick and maneuverable. You round the block and park to the side. The cops won’t know you’re one of us, you’re going to look like a nosy onlooker. As soon as you’re out the back, everyone else is hauling ass to clear your path. You detonate the C4, the moment before the cops walk in. Then you’re done and make your way to the safehouse."  
Ray drew the quickest path onto the map with a red line. Then he looked to the rest.  
"We’re going to split up. The explosion will confuse the cops, but only for a minute. Jack, you’re taking Geoff and Gavin, take the path to the south. Ryan and I will take the other road, to the north. We’ll take the longer way. Guides are Caleb for Jack, Kerry for Michael and Lindsay for me. We get rid of the cops, meet up at the safe house. Done."  
  
There is an uncomfortable silence, and Ray gets nervous. Wasn’t that a good plan? Was it too much? Did they expect more? His eyes flit from one member of the crew to another. They just stare at him, not really letting show what they think.  
  
Finally, it’s Geoff who stands up. “Ray”, he says, “I’m glad you found your way back into the business. Let’s do this. Welcome to the crew.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading Finding a way back. I'd like to thank especially everyone who left comments or messages for me. Thanks for every kudos and bookmark, and really, thanks to everybody who took the time to read the whole story.
> 
> If you want more of this AU, stay tuned for the next season, "The Belladonna Incident", which will probably start in mid September.
> 
> \- Mana


End file.
